John Smith and the School of Witchcraft and Wizardry
by ManaketeSmoocher
Summary: [Marauder's Era] It's kind of tough being a trans kid in the 70s. Maybe the magical world is more accepting than the muggle one. At least, that's what John is hoping for. Who knows, he might even find the courage to come out to his parents. [ACCEPTING OCS AND PROFESSORS - see Chapter 1&7 Author's Notes]
1. Chapter 1

**If you didn't read TRANS-ported to Hogwarts, I welcome you! And recommend that you don't read the original fanfic. It's bad. If you're here because you DID read TtH, I hope you enjoy the new and improved (in my opinion) story of John Smith, who I decided NOT to change the name of.**

 **Enjoy!**

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If one were to wait near the barriers of Platforms 9 and 10 at King's Cross Station on September 1st, 1971 at around 10:26 am, they would likely notice a multitude of children and their parents walking right through the brick wall. Of course, nobody did that because honestly, why would they? _If_ they did, however, there is the possibility they would notice a child of only 11 years wandering around unaccompanied. They would notice this child looking between platforms 9 and 10, confused, before glancing back down at a ticket. Whatever the problem was, would not be solved by reviewing this ticket, as it only reaffirmed the child's confusion and caused a scratch of the head. Several people asked if the child needed help finding the correct train, but received only a shake of the head as the child vaguely claimed to be waiting for someone.

This child was in fact a boy named John Smith, and he really did need help finding the correct train, but he didn't suppose any of these people would know how to find Platform 9 ¾. He bit his lip, hazel eyes darting between the platforms his destination would logically be in between. His parents had dropped him off at the station by his own request, as he didn't want them seeing him off. Part of him regretted it, but he doubted either of them would have been able to find the platform either. They also had to get to work anyways, and he'd rather not be a burden. Besides, he definitely didn't want any possible new friends to get the wrong idea about him because of his parents, and what they made him wear. He'd been standing around for several minutes when he smacked his own head, pushing his belongings towards the supposedly solid brick wall. Keyword being supposedly, as he found himself passing through it rather easily. He probably could have remembered those instructions from Professor McGonagall much sooner had his brain not overwhelmed itself. It was his first time out of his small town by himself, and he was unaccustomed to the crowds of London.

The Hogwarts Express stood gleaming bright red in the sunlight. John felt his breath catch in his throat, not having been prepared to see such a beautiful train. Wizarding families stood around, old friends seeing each other for the first time in ages, many people appearing from nowhere accompanied by loud cracks. Everything filled him with a sense of wonderment, and he could feel his heartbeat accelerate with how natural the magic aspect of it all was treated. Even the air felt _magical_ , and he almost couldn't contain his giddiness. He was sure his friend Allie would have been able to appreciate everything even more than he could, but then, she had always had a surprising fascination with trains.

Unfortunately for him, he had gotten to the platform early for a reason, and due to his forgetfulness, he was running slightly behind his self imposed schedule. He rushed onto the train, thankful when someone offered to help him with his belongings, and ran off to the restroom to change into his robes. By the time he was finished, people had begun making their way onto the train. He smiled a little uncomfortably when he passed by other students, awkwardly hiding his old clothes in his robes. Stepping back into his compartment, he spotted two heads of black hair. One was messier than a bird's nest, and the other looked as if its owner had spent much too much time on it. He stared at the other two, blinking several times before clearing his throat.

"I had my stuff in here." He gestured above the seats, where he had left his small bag. It was there so he would be able to change his clothes easily, and it had some snacks for the train ride.

"Oh, sorry." The messy haired boy sent him a lopsided grin. "Can we sit here?" John blinked, nodding.

"Yeah, that's fine." He got his bag down, opening it and shoving his old clothes inside, making sure the two couldn't properly see what it was. "What're your names?" He asked with a smile.

"James Potter." He adjusted his glasses, looking rather proud of himself for having a name. John stifled a small amount of laughter.

"I'm John Smith. What about you?" He spoke directly to the grey-eyed boy, who had done nothing but stare at him since he entered the compartment.

"Oh- Sirius. That's my name." He seemed distracted, and hadn't even provided a last name.

"... Is there something on my face?" John rubbed his own cheek, uncomfortable with Sirius's staring.

"No, I just thought I saw you earlier, but wearing a dress." Sirius said, causing John to tense up.

"You didn't." He responded perhaps a little hastily.

Luckily for him, the compartment door opened, and an upset redhead rushed in, curling up in the corner beside the window. She seemed content ignoring the three boys, and an awkward silence fell. Within a few minutes, however, James and Sirius had resumed conversing. John was left out of the conversation, which he supposed he didn't mind too much. He was seated between James and the nameless redhead girl; Sirius seemed content to take up the other seat. The compartment door slid open, however, and Sirius realized with a grumble that he would have to give up some of his seat. The sallow skinned boy sat opposite of the redhead girl. They seemed to know each other, and John listened in on their conversation.

"I don't want to talk to you." The girl seemed to be crying.

"Why not?" The newest arrival pushed greasy hair out of his face.

"Tuney h-hates me. Because we saw that letter from Dumbledore." She answered him. John really wished he knew what they were talking about, but it wasn't exactly his business.

"So what?" He asked, and the girl gave him a rather intense glare.

"So she's my sister!"

"She's only a-" He stopped himself from saying whatever it was he was going to say. Fortunately, the girl didn't hear him. "But we're going! This is it! We're off to Hogwarts!" John realized very suddenly that the train had been moving. The girl smiled through watery eyes. "You'd better be in Slytherin."

"Slytherin?" James sounded revolted by the thought. "Who wants to be in Slytherin? I think I'd leave, wouldn't you?" He directed his question towards Sirius.

"My whole family's been in Slytherin." He didn't smile.

"Blimey, and I thought you seemed alright!"

"Maybe I'll break the tradition. Where are you heading, if you've got the choice?" Sirius grinned. John had absolutely no idea what they were talking about, and was further confused when James brandished an imaginary sword.

"'Gryffindor, where dwell the brave at heart!' Like my dad." James sounded incredibly fond of his father. The unnamed boy made a small sound of disapproval. "Got a problem with that?"

"No, if you'd rather be brawny than brainy-"

"Where're you hoping to go, seeing as you're neither?" Sirius interjected, causing James to burst out in laughter. The girl stood from her seat, glaring at the boys.

"Come on, Severus, let's find another compartment." She grabbed the newly named Severus's wrist and dragged him out of the compartment as Sirius and James jeered at them. James tried to trip Severus, but he thankfully failed.

"See ya, Snivellus!"

The compartment door slammed shut, and John thought Sirius and James were being a little mean. He scooted away from James, towards the window so he could have some more personal space. Sirius returned to lounging across the entire seat, and James yawned. The two black haired boys snickered.

"Sirius Black." Sirius said, introducing himself properly this time. "Didn't want you judging me by my family." He spat the word 'family' as if it left a rotten taste in his mouth.

"Well, you seem alright for a Black." He joked. John sat silently in his seat. "You hoping for Gryffindor?"

"Sorry, what're Gryffindor and Slytherin and all that?" John asked. James and Sirius turned to give him an odd sort of look. "Is that supposed to be common knowledge?"

"I bet you're a muggleborn." James stated. Sirius seemed about to open his mouth, before frowning and thinking about something.

"I mean, I think so. That's not a problem though, right?" John hadn't spent much time learning the wizarding vernacular. James shook his head.

"Nah. Sirius and I are both purebloods, so I guess we just sort of expected everyone to know about this sort of thing." James waved any concerns of his off, though John didn't miss Sirius's surprised look when James claimed to be a pureblood.

"... Right…" John had to wonder why their blood was classified as pure. It seemed rather unfair, and was just asking for conflict. He didn't want to ask further questions, however. "Gryffindor is brave or something, but what's all this about?"

"Hogwarts houses! Gryffindor is brave and awesome, Slytherin's full of nasty dark wizards- no offense, Sirius." James stated, the last bit sounding like an afterthought. Sirius shrugged.

"None taken, really." He cleared his throat. "Ravenclaw's for nerds and weirdos."

"And I don't really know what a Hufflepuff is. I think they're loyal or something."

"But what's the point of it all?"

"You get sorted into your house and all the people in houses are like your new family or something. I think it's pretty cool."

"You have all your classes together and sleep in the same dorms." Sirius added. John hummed slightly, not really sure what to make of the system. "I'll be happy with anything besides Slytherin, but it'd be nice to get into Gryffindor and rub it my family's face."

"What about you, John?"

"I dunno. I guess I don't really care, but Gryffindor sounds cool." A smile graced his face.

The three of them continued to chat for quite a while, with absolutely no interruption until a woman opened their compartment door, asking if they wanted anything to eat. James practically jumped at the chance to buy boatloads of candy, though Sirius seemed more reserved. John wondered what was bothering him. From the sounds of it, Sirius was just as wealthy as James, if not moreso. In the end, Sirius only bought a few things, and James had enough to feed three small families - an impressive feat. John himself hadn't bought anything, as he had no wizarding currency and had seen James buying so much anyways. The woman left their compartment with a much lighter cart than she'd had before.

"Wait, so what's the deal with these frogs?" John asked as he took a rather decorative box labelled with 'Honeyduke's Chocolate Frog' and claimed to be made with 70% Croakoa. A smile sneaked across his face.

"They're just frogs made of chocolate." James explained with a mouthful of pumpkin pasty. Sirius laughed as he popped a jellybean into his mouth.

"Make sure it doesn't hit the ground." He advised before choking, spitting the bean out of his mouth. "Who the bloody hell makes a rotten fish flavored bean!" He snatched the other half of James's pumpkin pasty, shoving it in his mouth to try and forget the taste. James laughed, looking only slightly miffed by the loss of pasty.

"Oh, let me try one of those!" John reached into the distinctly shaped box, popping a different bean into his mouth. He sighed.

"What is it?" James questioned, as Sirius was too busy trying to forget the terrible taste.

"Homemade apple pie." John grinned as Sirius glared at him. "Sorry mate, I guess you just got unlucky."

John returned his attention to the chocolate frog, carefully opening the box before being hit in the face by the fake amphibian. He yelped slightly before snatching the creature, biting its head off. He swallowed, staring down at the now limp frog in his hands and feeling as if he'd just committed a murder. Frowning, he decided to just eat the rest of the thing. The other two boys snickered at his sullen expression.

"Y'know, in the muggle world, we don't have candy that pretends to be alive." He stated defensively.

"Sounds terrible." Sirius claimed offhandedly as he grabbed the card John hadn't noticed.

"Oh, what'd he get?" James leaned across to look at the card.

"Paracelsus." Sirius responded, turning the card around and looking somewhat bored. "He lived from 1493 to 1541 and knew some guys named Copernicus and Da Vinci. And of course, he was credited with discovering Parseltongue." He tossed the card back to John. "Merlin knows my mum's told me all about him before."

John looked at the card himself, and noted that Sirius had included only half of the information. The exact words were 'Phillipus Aureolus Theophrastus Bombastus von Hohenheim, born Phillipus von Hohenheim, better known as Paracelsus (1493—1541): a Contemporary of Copernicus and Leonardo Da Vinci. A medical genius and alchemist whose bold theories challenged medieval thought. Credited with discovering Parseltongue.' John clicked his tongue, impressed.

"Wow, he sounds cool. A medical genius and an alchemist? I'd give a lot to be like him." He smiled.

"Damn, I don't have him yet." James frowned, and Sirius reached in his bag, handing him a card.

"I've got about twenty of him. You got anything to trade?"

James and Sirius proceeded to blab on about chocolate frog cards as John stared at the one he'd received. He was only somewhat surprised by the moving picture, as he had seen moving pictures in various places when he went to Diagon Alley. What interested him more was simply how ornate the pentagonal container was. It was a bit of a shock, as it was a mass produced candy box. He yawned, pulling his legs up onto the seat as he decided to look out the window. The train had left the station at exactly eleven o'clock, and a few hours had passed. James and Sirius continued to joke around, John trying his best to follow their magical conversations. Despite his best efforts, the boy ended up falling asleep. He was violently shaken from his slumber as the train lurched to a stop and he suddenly found himself on the floor of the compartment. Sirius and James snickered at him before John joined in, and their suppressed giggles became full laughter. The three of them made it out of the train before being directed to the boats that were intended to take them to shore, and they were joined by a shy, mousy looking boy. After a rather short speech from a rather large man, the boats began to glide across the water towards Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

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 ** _Word Count: 2,456_**

 **EDIT 6/14/18: I mostly just changed the flow of things, and made it so Sirius was hiding his family name because he didn't want to be judged for it. Through my more recent research, I realized the Potter family is not part of the Sacred Twenty-Eight, so Sirius likely wouldn't recognize his name. If you look a bit further down at the first author's note, you'll see I wasn't solid on which ships I would be doing. This fic will include Jily (or Lames, as I like to call it), WolfStar, and a onesided!John/Remus thing. This is the first of three parts (it's a trilogy of sorts), and will take place during John's four years at Hogwarts. The second will be the rest of his schooling, and the third will begin shortly before his 29th birthday, and cover all of Harry's years, and some bits before.**

 **I am also accepting OCs! Please send your OCs in, because I desperately need more characters. Please just fill out this form, and I will either write a short sorting ceremony for your character or tell you why I cannot use them (as well as give you the opportunity to fix the things I am not accepting). Please note that the dorm limit is 5 people, so nobody else can be a 5th year Gryffindor boy, but literally every other combination of year/house/gender is fine.**

 **My only absolute requirement that I will not discuss is that you need to have an account for me to accept your OC. I need to be able to respond to you, and if you don't have an account there is no way for me to contact you. Please make an account if you do not have one already and you want to submit an OC.**

 **Name:** (Do not be Ebony Dark'ness Dementia Raven Way unless you want me to cry)

 **Gender/Sexuality:** (Sexuality likely won't be too important but I like to know anyways)

 **Birthdate:** (For now just assume Marauder's era birthdates. Keep between the years 1953-1963 and note that most of the students in the Marauder's grade were born before September in 1960, or after September in 1959)

 **Blood Status:** (This is much more important here than it was in Harry's time, because blood tensions were much higher at this point as we lead up to the first war against Voldemort)

 **Wand:** (Use Pottermore information to choose the most accurate wood/core/length/flexibility because I will be looking up the meaning and it will help me understand them as a character)

 **Appearance:** (keep in mind that it's the 70s)

 **Preferred House:** (I will take your preference into account if I am struggling to make a decision, but I may decide on a different house so don't expect this to affect my decision too much)

 **Personality:** (please be detailed here so I can understand your character better and sort them properly)

 **Values:** (what traits does your character value in a person? Do they see magic as a gift or a tool? Do they care for blood purity? Note that there is probably a lot of blood tension due to the time period. What do they want to use magic for? I'm not asking you to answer all of these questions, but do try to think along those lines for this section. It's very important to sorting, as I believe this section is what helped put Hermione and possibly Neville in Gryffindor. Do NOT just list the traits of the house you want to be in)

 **Backstory:** (you can be like, tragic, but if you're too tragic I will either reject your character, never explore the complexity of them, or further discuss possibly putting them in the second part of the story instead of the first, as I will be able to explore complex characters more in-depth with the second part)

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 **(original A/N)**

 **So, here's the beginning of this new and improved adventure! If you read TtH, you might remember me mentioning that I was planning on changing John's name to Jean, to be more French and also separate his name from my name, but... Then I changed my name to Sean, so John got to stay the same.**

 **This story will follow John's first three or four years at Hogwarts, and I have a pretty good idea as to where I'm going. Pairings will include Jily, possibly WolfStar, and perhaps a onesided John/Remus kind of thing. I might cut that out, I might not. At this point, John's sexuality seems really unimportant, but in the future, after Sirius's death, him and Remus might get together. Who knows.**


	2. Chapter 2

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry didn't look like it could possibly be real. Warm pinpricks of light in the distance danced across the rippling water of the lake, where the Giant Squid was lazily waving its tentacles at the newest batch of first year students. The moon was not full, but its light shed an ethereal glow on the world. Stars twinkled like winking eyes, telling them the next stage of their lives was only beginning. Muggleborns, purebloods, everything in between… It mattered not, as they were all children with no idea what the world had in store for them in the years to come.

The boats came to a halt on castle grounds, and the large man taking an entire boat to himself led them into the castle, where they were left alone to wait. John stood by the mousy boy- Peter Pettigrew was what he called himself. James and Sirius stood nearby, nervously discussing what the sorting ceremony could entail. John thought it was silly to worry about it. Agonizing over it would only cause one to grow fearful and freeze up. Best to face the challenge head on and react in the moment.

Soon, a stern looking woman with a tight bun approached them, and a hush fell over the first year class of 1971. She practically radiated authority, and John had the feeling she wasn't someone to cross. The woman cleared her throat and recited a speech she had likely spoken on this day many years previously, would would continue to say for future generations. Afterwards, the group of eleven year-olds were led into the Great Hall, and nearly everyone's eyes shot up to the ceiling, jaws dropping as they saw twinkling stars shine above floating candlesticks.

A ratty old hat was brought out, along with a worn stool. Many first years stared at it in confusion, some with suspicion. A seam near the brim tore itself open, and the ratty old hat burst into song. John stared at it in wonder. It seemed like an absolutely useless bit of magic, but he loved it. He wondered if he could have a singing hat one day. The song it sang described each of the four houses, and John came to the conclusion that the boys he'd met on the train had a bias against Slytherin house.

Soon, Professor McGonagall (as he'd learned the stern looking woman was named) was calling out names. It was alphabetical by last name, so John Smith assumed he probably wouldn't be sorted for a while. He sincerely hoped he wouldn't be called the wrong name. That would be an awful way to start the school year. The young boy listened for names he might recognize, and it was quite soon that one of his train companions was called to the stool.

"Black, Sirius!"

There was a confident air about him, but John couldn't help wondering if it were real or not. The long table clad in green looked rather confident. They were ready to clap, and John assumed they were the Slytherin house. As McGonagall lowered the hat onto Sirius's head, however, the young boy's eyes nervously caught James's. James gave him a grin and thumbs-up, both of them looking hopefully toward the Gryffindor table. The hat was only on his head for a moment before reaching its conclusion.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

The grin threatening to split Sirius's face in half was infectious. James cheered loudly for his friend, who all but ran to his new house table after taking the Sorting Hat off. It only took the Gryffindors a moment before they began to cheer, because somehow a Black was sorted into their house, and by Merlin they would make sure he turned out different from the rest of his family if it was the last thing they did. None of them knew they wouldn't have to try; Sirius Black was nothing like the rest of his family, and he was damn proud of it.

"Evans, Lily!" McGonagall called, and the redhead from the train walked up to the stool. She met Severus's eyes, but the sallow-skinned boy looked away with a frown as the wide rim of the hat blocked her vision.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Lily smiled and went towards the sea of red, sending a hopeful look towards Severus, who would not meet her eyes. Her smile dampened. John felt sorry for the two of them. Severus, in the brief moment John had met him, did not seem like Gryffindor material. He didn't know much about houses, but he thought it was a shame that they had the potential to tear friendships apart. There was no doubt in his mind that, had Sirius been sorted into Slytherin, James would have stopped pursuing his friendship.

"Lupin, Remus!"

John didn't recognize his name or face from anywhere, but he desperately wished he did. Remus was slight, with scars littering what little skin was visible. His hair and clothes were disheveled, and there were heavy bags beneath eyes that almost looked like gold in the warm light. John quickly realized this observation was wrong, and they were actually a dull sort of green. He wondered why he thought they were gold. The boy looked much older than his eleven years of age as he carefully sat on the stool, as if worried his bones would break. It took a couple minutes for the hat to decide where to put him.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Poor Remus Lupin jumped in his seat at the shout of the hat, and John wondered just how loud it really was when one was so close to it. He handed the hat back to McGonagall before walking towards the Gryffindor table. Sirius grinned at him enthusiastically, and Remus returned the smile in a tired manner. He seemed somewhat fidgety and nervous, and John found his curiosity spike. The next name he recognized didn't surface for a while, and he idly hoped he would find a place in Gryffindor. It's where all the interesting people seemed to be going, at least.

"Pettigrew, Peter!"

The mousy boy from the boats scampered over to the stool. He was very round, John observed. The ratty old Sorting Hat flopped down over his eyes, and the usual hush fell over the hall. John had thought Remus's sorting had taken a while. He had nothing on Peter Pettigrew. The hat took a long time, and Peter fidgetted. Sweat beaded on his forehead, though nobody in the hall knew but him, and perhaps the hat, if hats could feel such things. After an agonizingly long time, the hat decided.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Peter scampered off to the Gryffindor table, nearly taking the hat with him in the process. He received a warm welcome, and John couldn't tell if his eyes were naturally watery or if he were about to cry with joy. The crowd of first years had thinned considerably, and a glance to his side showed a relaxed James. John met his eye, receiving a calm smile. James returned his gaze forward, shoving his hands into his pockets. There was a slight tremor to them, betraying the nerves that the rest of him refused to show.

"Potter, James!"

If anyone in the future claimed that James Potter did not strut, John would have to smack them upside the head, because he fully believed James Potter would spend all seven years at Hogwarts strutting about the castle as if he owned the place. James Potter ran his hand through his already messy hair, messing it up even further before sitting on the stool. John rolled his eyes. It took only moments for the hat to cry out the answer everyone was expecting.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

As James went to join his new family and get pulled into a hug by Sirius, John glanced at the few first years left. He looked at Severus, wondering what his last name was and which of them would go first. Severus caught his stare and glared at him. John failed in his attempt not to be offended, and instead wondered what his problem was. He childishly stuck his tongue out at him before suddenly, his name rang out, and his heart soared with joy.

"Smith, John!"

John grinned, practically running up to the stool, because that was his _name_ and there had been no mistakes in which name should be said. He almost hugged Professor McGonagall in his excitement, but she only nodded to the stool. If he knew her better, he would perhaps be able to tell she was fondly amused by his giddiness. The hat was lowered onto his head, and he closed his eyes, wanting to focus entirely on the hat. He wondered how the sorting process actually worked, before a creaky old voice filled his mind.

'Well, aren't you an interesting fellow?'

'Hah?' John very articulately responded.

'You're practically bursting with joy now, but how long do you think you can keep your secret?' The hat asked, and John was very glad nobody could hear a thing they were talking about.

'I… don't know what you're talking about…'

'My dear boy, I can see everything in your mind. Even if you were good at manipulating others, you wouldn't be able to lie to me.'

'I've never been very good at secrets…' John admitted.

'Exactly the reason you won't be going into Slytherin.' The hat said decisively, and John jumped a little at the sudden change of subject. 'I see you wish to follow in your parents footsteps and become a healer, but you don't have the thirst for knowledge as a Ravenclaw would. Hufflepuff would seem viable, but you have a hard time trusting in others. You're brave in ways most people wouldn't have to be, you know.'

'You mean…?'

"GRYFFINDOR!"

John grinned and ran off towards the sea of red. James and Sirius were already sitting beside each other, so John sat across from them, beside Remus. Unfortunately for the four of them, the sorting ceremony wasn't quite finished yet. They watched the last students get sorted, including one Severus Snape. The hat had barely touched his head before sorting him into Slytherin, and he had the defeated look of someone who knew he couldn't win in the first place. Lily deflated slightly, but there was a fiery resolve in her emerald eyes.

The student body looked up as Professor Dumbledore welcomed everyone to Hogwarts with an eccentric speech. He took the time to introduce the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor before instructing the students not to break any rules. James and Sirius whispered to each other suspiciously. The headmaster then hardened his face, and the shift in mood caused everyone to take him completely seriously.

"I must ask everyone to keep their distance from the new Whomping Willow that has been planted on school grounds. If you get too close, you will suffer grave injuries you may be unable to recover from." Dumbledore paused, before letting his expression soften, smiling at the students with twinkling eyes. "Now that we've discussed that order of business, I'm sure everyone must be starving. Please, enjoy your meal."

Food materialized on golden platters on every house's table, but John felt a lump in his throat. Why in the world would Professor Dumbledore plant a tree like the whomping willow on school grounds? He wasn't exactly sure what a whomping willow was, but it was evidently capable of doing permanent damage to anyone who went near it. Beside him, Remus sat stiffly, barely touching his food. He didn't join in the cheerful banter of James and Sirius, and John sent him what he hoped was an empathetic smile. Remus only looked away from him, staring down at his plate and cutting into his meat.

Not wanting to push the issue, John focussed in on James and Sirius's conversation. The two purebloods seemed to have glossed over the bit about the extremely dangerous tree. James was telling Sirius about all the shenanigans he gets up to at home. Sirius, while quite interested, seemed a bit thrown off by his tales. John wondered what that was about. He was dragged into the conversation when James asked him about his own life, and all John really had to say was that his parents were boring doctors and he missed his childhood friend.

"Childhood friend, eh? What's his name?" James asked.

"Her name is Allison Whitney, but she'd kill you if you called her that." John said with a smile. "She's a year younger than me, and obsessed with trains."

"I bet she'll love the Hogwarts Express." James said.

"Well I mean, it's not like she's a witch…" John frowned.

"Maybe she is." Sirius shrugged casually before drinking his pumpkin juice.

"If Allie can use magic, you'll find me hiding in the nurse's office." John said, rather firmly.

The three of them laughed after the confirmation that 'nurse's office' meant 'hospital wing' and dinner passed pleasantly. When dessert came, John could hardly force another bite into his mouth, and he was exhausted. He hoped there would be more delicious desserts to try in the future, but that thought left his head in favor of finding his bed and sinking down into it. After learning the password and being shown to their dorms, John couldn't hold in the sigh of relief that everything had been so easy. His roommates likely read this as a reaction to finally reaching a bed, and he wasn't one to correct them.

John hoped it would always be this easy, but knew in his heart that the Sorting Hat was right. He was horrible at keeping secrets. It would be a miracle if he managed to get through his schooling without any of his roommates discovering his body didn't exactly match theirs. As he drifted off to sleep, he supposed he would deal with that particular predicament whenever it did finally come to light.

* * *

 _ **Word Count: 2,320**_

 **EDIT 6/14/18: I honestly can't remember what I changed, but it was probably just little grammar things. I've been working intensely on this fanfic in the past week, particularly on the outline and what I have planned for it, so please don't give up on it quite yet because I have big plans and don't want to be disappointed and lose motivation thanks to the lack of attention.**

* * *

 **(original A/N)**

 **I know, I know, it's been ages. Sorry to the 8 people who are following this (though I'm sure you've forgotten about it in my half-year absence). I kind of have depression and huge issues with motivation at any given moment, so I won't be able to give you an estimate on when the next chapter will be out. I'll be starting college come this fall, so we'll see.**

 **I also scribbled out a quick (hopefully temporary) cover for this fic that I mainly did to show you guys what John looks like, though his design is pretty simple anyways.**

 **I don't really know what to say right now, so I guess I'll just stop typing up this author's note? I don't even really think anyone cares about this fic anyways**


	3. Chapter 3

The morning of September 3rd, John Smith woke to the various sounds of other people getting ready for the day. Seeing as classes wouldn't start until Monday, John decided to pull his blankets over his head and try to fall back asleep. Unfortunately for him, James and Sirius were extremely loud people. James was a morning person. Sirius was not. Both of them managed to be much too loud for this hour. John throw his pillows at them.

Deciding it would be much too difficult to fall back asleep at this point, John fully opened the curtains surrounding his four poster bed and observed his room-mates. Peter was also awake, but the pudgy boy had managed to stay so quiet John hadn't even noticed him until he sent a meek little wave his way. James had picked up the pillow John had thrown, and decided to chuck it right back at him. He successfully hit him in the face, and John yelped. Sirius's bed had the curtains drawn, but the way they were swaying told John this was a recent development. The only one of them unaccounted for was a certain Remus Lupin. He was nowhere to be seen, and his bed was neatly made, the curtains drawn back.

"Why do I have to be awake right now?" John asked, grouchiness apparent in his voice. "It's seven in the early times."

"Smith understands!" Came Sirius's muffled voice.

"Well see, I reckon it'd be a great idea to explore the castle before you lot manage to get lost on the way to class on Monday." James stuck his tongue out.

"Shouldn't we get breakfast first?" Peter asked before the other two boys could get defensive.

"I reckon it'd be a great idea to explore the castle after breakfast so you lot don't get lost on the way to class on Monday." James corrected himself as his stomach grumbled.

"If anyone's getting lost it's you, mate." Sirius also grumbled.

"I'm all for exploring the castle, but I just wanted to relax today…" John frowned. "Besides, Remus isn't even here."

"He's probably at breakfast." James shrugged. "Now come on! Up you get! We've got food to eat and secrets to find!"

John stared at him for a moment before pulling his blanket over his head again. This was not something he wanted to deal with. He feared James would always be an insufferable morning person. Now, John had nothing against mornings, unless he hadn't been planning on waking up so early. He would have no problem making it to his first class on time when school started (so long as he didn't get lost), but his free days were already booked with sleeping in and lazing about. Perhaps doing homework if he _really_ wanted to be productive. James was having none of his grumpiness, and promptly tore the covers off John's bed.

"Oi!"

"Up, up, up!" James clapped with every 'up' and John groaned, getting to his feet. "My pop tells me the best mates you'll ever have, you'll meet at Hogwarts, and I'm positive you lot're the ones he's talking about!"

"My mum tells me the worst enemies you'll ever have, you'll meet at Hogwarts." Sirius said, poking his head out from between his crimson curtains. His shoulder length hair needed a good brush, and he looked as if he hadn't slept well as he could have the previous night.

"Your mum sounds like she could stand to have a little more fun." James commented.

"Tell me about it." Sirius groaned. "I'll be ready in an hour, don't bother me until then."

The latest Black to attend Hogwarts shuffled out of his bed, clothes beneath his arm and toiletries in hand. James protested this time frame, but Sirius was having none of it. He stuck his tongue out at his roommate, simultaneously pulling his lower eyelid down. James looked affronted, but Sirius continued on his way and spent an hour primping in the restroom. John only shrugged, taking a moment to change in the privacy of his own bed curtains. There was no need to shower, as he'd done so last night. When he finished, he was wearing a rather simple outfit of dungarees and a white tee shirt. Uniforms wouldn't be required outside of class, so he certainly wasn't about to wear one now.

By the time Sirius had finished taking care of his appearance, it was a little past eight in the morning. James had already showered before him, so thankfully no more waiting was necessary past Peter's need to splash his face with water. The four of them made their way down the stairs, through the common room, and out the Fat Lady's portrait. John wondered what her name was. She seemed like an Elizabeth. He voiced his thoughts as the group made their way through the halls of Hogwarts, getting lost only once as they made their way towards the great hall.

"What about Dawn? She seems like she could be a Dawn." Peter said, as they were still on the subject of the Fat Lady.

"I don't know. It seems too modern." Sirius disagreed.

"Oh, Remus!" John grinned as he spotted their missing room-mate. "You left before any of us got up." He said as he sat beside the boy. Remus scooted away slightly.

"Er, yeah, I wanted to ask Professor McGonagall about the schedule…" Remus said, averting his eyes. John thought he looked exhausted. His hair wasn't even brushed.

"What's our first class, anyways?" James asked, sitting across from the two of them, flanked by Sirius and Peter. He got a plate of eggs and sausage.

"I…" Remus was at a loss. "I forgot."

"I hope it's Transfiguration." John sighed.

"You'd better hope you're actually good at it. Transfiguration is one of the hardest classes we have." Sirius told him. John pouted.

"Well I bet I'll be great at it." James claimed.

"I bet you'll turn your nose into a toad." Sirius countered.

James had enough pride to be offended by that, and the two of them squabbled like brothers. John laughed with amusement at the scene as he ate his breakfast. Peter jumped into their conversation when possible, but it was clear he was having a bit of trouble getting any word in. Remus seemed nearly finished with his food, so John told him of James's plan to explore the castle before they would have classes on Monday. It took the scarred boy a moment to decide whether or not he would join them, and he decided it wouldn't hurt to have a bit of fun 'before tomorrow'. When asked what he meant, Remus simply shook his head, and John was forced to let it go.

The five of them left the Great Hall after everyone was sufficiently fed, with James and Sirius arguing over who should be leading the group. As they did so, Remus quietly walked ahead and became the unofficial leader for the time being. It took longer than expected for them to get utterly lost, and Peter got his foot stuck in a trick step. Instead of laughing at him, the other four boys pulled him out at once, and all of them wound up tumbling down the rest of the stairs. Now battered and bruised, they decided it was perhaps time for lunch.

As the five boys ate their lunch, Professor McGonagall approached them, a stack of papers in hand. She briefly explained these were their schedules, and that all first year Gryffindors would have the same schedule. Electives weren't chosen until their third year. John thought this was stupid as he wanted to take Care of Magical Creatures and get mauled by a hippogriff. He very wisely did not voice this thought in front of Professor McGonagall, but James emphatically agreed with him when she was out of earshot. None of them decided to pore over their schedules until they were sufficiently stuffed with food. They meandered towards the courtyard as they inspected the parchment.

"We've got potions with Slytherin?" James scrunched his face up with disgust.

"And history of magic." Sirius pointed out, looking further than their first class come Monday.

"Well, at least we won't fall asleep now." Remus said, voice quiet and without malice. He hadn't spoken much yet, and John hoped he would warm up to them soon.

"What's so bad about history?" John asked cluelessly.

"The teacher is a ghost." Peter said miserably. "He died one day and didn't stop teaching. It's like his voice is a sleep charm."

John winced. That sounded pretty bad. Looking down at his schedule, he could at least be glad they only had history twice a week, though the same couldn't be said about potions. He hoped that class would be fun despite the Slytherins, as he was quite interested in the subject. It was the one he assumed would have most to do with medicine, and though he wasn't particularly close to his parents, he still wanted to become a doctor like them. A healer, he corrected himself in his mind. Wizard doctors were called healers.

Not wanting to get lost in the castle again, they stayed outside. The courtyard seemed somewhat boring before too long, so they went towards the lake, quickly finding a pleasant tree to sit under. They could see the giant squid lazing about near the glassy surface of the lake, and the whomping willow stood still in the distance. One almost wouldn't be able to tell the tree would violently clobber anyone who came near. John wondered if they would learn about it in herbology. He adjusted the strap of his dungarees.

"What d'you lot wanna be when you grow up?" He asked.

"An auror. Definitely." James responded as he used his wand like a common stick to draw in the dirt.

"Anything but a politician. I'd be happy if I never had to talk to anyone like my family ever again." Sirius sighed dramatically, stretching himself out on the grass. His hair fanned out around him, and the sun kissed his face.

"Being an auror would be cool!" Peter squeaked. Him and James shared a grin, and James ruffled his hair.

"Well, I wanna be a healer. My parents are muggle doctors." John said. "What about you, Remus?" He asked, turning to face him.

"I… I don't know, I don't think I'd be able to get a job if I grow up." The quiet boy mumbled. "It'd be nice to be a librarian, though."

"Oi, what're you doing in Gryffindor then?" James laughed as he shoved him lightly.

"Get your arse in Ravenclaw, Lupin!" Sirius jeered, sitting up. Remus rolled his eyes, rubbing his shoulder.

"Maybe you should get your arse in the lake. I hear the squid's looking for a mate." He countered. Sirius's jaw dropped in shock as James started cackling.

"Did you just- Ohh, you're a right devil, aren't you? Under that soft, nerdy exterior, you've got a tongue sharp as a blade." Sirius narrowed his eyes at Remus, who only smiled pleasantly.

"Haven't a clue what you're talking about. D'you fancy a bean?" He said lightly, holding out a bright red Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Bean.

"Cherry?" Sirius asked, taking the bean without too much thought and popping it in his mouth. He chewed for a moment, then start choking, desperate to spit it out. "Hot peppers! You devious little prat!" Sirius clawed at his tongue. "James! Water!" He begged.

"Haven't got any mate, sorry." He didn't look sorry at all.

"I never said it was cherry." Remus said, feigning innocence.

"Slytherin! Should've been in Slytherin!" Sirius shouted as he got up and ran back up to the castle.

"Should we follow him?" John asked.

"I'll go make sure he doesn't get lost." Remus rolled his eyes, casually strolling after Sirius.

And so there were three. James led the conversation, bringing up the subject of quidditch. Upon learning John had never heard of the sport, he was flabbergasted. Peter joined him in explaining, and John could only be fascinated with this silly wizard sport played on broomsticks. It was with disappointment that he was reminded first years weren't allowed broomsticks. James told him he could probably visit sometime and play in his backyard. All of them probably could. By the time they checked the time, they realized it was nearly time for supper. They walked back to the Great Hall, glad there was at least one location they could find without getting lost.

Remus and Sirius were already sitting at the Gryffindor table. It seemed Sirius had already forgotten about Remus's earlier betrayal, and was telling him some sort of joke. Remus looked to be barely paying attention, but he nodded along politely. Supper was a pleasant affair, and they soon made their way back towards Gryffindor tower. The next morning would be Saturday, and John almost wished it were Monday already. Remus was nowhere to be seen that weekend, but the four of them were too busy exploring the castle to question him about it. He wouldn't have such luck in the future, but at least he got a free pass that first full moon.

* * *

 ** _Word Count: 2,199_**

 **Hello! Yes, I've finally written this chapter. I've only received one OC submission thus far, and would like to request that you send your OCs in if you have any you'd like to see me write. The form to fill out can be found at the end of Chapter 1 now.**

 **I'm writing this fic and my How to Train Your Dragon fic at the same time, however, so the next chapter of this won't be posted until after I've written that one. Those chapters are easier for me to write, however, so hopefully it shouldn't take _too_ long.**

 **It'd be lovely if you could leave a review (even if it isn't an OC submission!) because those are an author's life force and keep them going. I love to hear feedback and talk about my fics, and I'm never going to be cross with you unless you're being particularly rude!**

 **Anyways, I love you guys! I hope to see you again!**


	4. Chapter 4

The first year Gryffindor boys spent their first weekend at Hogwarts exploring the castle and getting to know each other, only vaguely wondering where Remus had gone off to. Though they had gotten lost a significant number of times, they believed they would be able to find their way to their classes without too much trouble. John wondered aloud why Hogwarts didn't have a map drawn out for its students. Peter reasoned it would be difficult to plot out every hidden passage and corridor, while James and Sirius seemed to take the idea as a challenge.

John had been correct in his previous assumption that James would continue to be an insufferable morning person. He found himself pitying Sirius, who had shoved his head under his pillow in an attempt to sleep as James obnoxiously hummed and made his bed. Remus was nowhere to be found, but John figured he probably just went to breakfast early. Peter was putting his bookbag together. John himself was pulling his robes on. He'd already neatly pulled his uniform on, save for the pathetic attempt at tying his tie.

"You call that a tie?" Sirius asked, finally giving up on sleeping.

"Well, I mean, my parents never taught me to-"

"I need to fix this. Hold on." Sirius went over to John and nimbly tied his tie for him.

"What are you, my mum?" John's cheeks flushed, embarrassed.

"Oh Merlin, no." Sirius stuck his tongue out in disgust and made his way over to the shower.

"You've only got half an hour!" James called after him. "I don't know about _you_ lot, but _I_ want to go get breakfast before classes start."

"Do you think they have french toast?" Peter asked, shouldering his bag.

"They'd better." James said, his voice much heavier than it needed to be.

"I just want sausage." John said, fiddling with his tie.

"We're going to breakfast!" Peter shouted towards the restroom before the three of them left.

Remus was not at breakfast when they arrived at Gryffindor table, so John could only assume the quiet boy had decided to go to class early. It was a fleeting thought, and it was quickly chased from his mind as he shoved food in his mouth. At this rate, he was going to be overweight before he even turned twelve. Maybe this was why muggle schools required physical education. John remembered trying to play with the boys. They never let him. Nothing was stopping him from playing with the boys now that he was at Hogwarts though, and the thought made him grin.

"I can't believe Potions is really in the dungeons." Peter lamented. "It's _creepy._ "

"My mother says they hang misbehaving students up by their ankles down here."

"Oh please, that's Filch, not Slughorn." James rolled his eyes at his friend.

"You guys are joking, right?" John asked cautiously. "That sounds illegal."

"Sorry John, it's wizard law." James patted his shoulder solemnly. "The caretaker gets to do whatever he wants, so long as he's grouchy enough."

"Oi, stop scaring him." A voice sounded from behind, and the four of them turned around to see the red-haired girl from the train.

"We're just joshin' around, Evans." James shrugged, running a hand through his hair in an attempt to mess it up even further.

"I'm fine, I try not to take these two very seriously." John added.

"Oi!" Sirius looked affronted.

"Well, if you ever need to get away from them, come find me." Evans tucked her red hair behind her ear and stopped outside of the Potions room.

The door was open already, so John assumed she was waiting on someone. He walked in with his friends, and his assumption was proven correct when she joined the rest of the class a few minutes later with one Severus Snape beside her. James and Sirius taunted him about his greasy hair messing up his potions, and Evans took her friend to the other side of the room. Professor Slughorn sat at the front of the room with a jovial grin. He was rotund like a man who enjoyed a good meal, and his cheeks were rosy despite the unpleasant classroom. Peter quietly hoped he wouldn't favor the Slytherins too much.

"Welcome, young witches and wizards!" He boomed, standing and walking in front of his desk. "I see many many fresh new faces, take a seat, take a seat. Take care who you sit by- they'll be your potions partner for the rest of your life."

"..."

"Or today at least!" Slughorn laughed loudly.

Everyone seemed to know who they wanted to pair with already. James and Sirius simultaneously tried to put their arms around each other's shoulders, which resulted in an awkward collision. They sat down, pretending nothing happened. Peter and Remus quietly paired off, and John tried to remember if he'd seen Remus walk in previously. Evans had paired off with Snape, and the rest of the Gryffindor girls had paired with each other. The same went for most of the Slytherins, and John awkwardly found himself sitting with a Slytherin boy he couldn't remember the name of from the sorting ceremony.

Despite John's initial minor excitement for the subject of Potions, one thing that remained consistent between muggle school and wizarding school was that nothing happened on the first day. Slughorn told them the basic syllabus, which John barely managed to pay attention to. After this, he lectured them on basic potions ingredients, using magic to have his chalk draw images of the ingredients on the board. As much as John wanted to be fascinated by the new information, he found his attention wander and he instead decided to inspect his new potions partner. He was a bit pale, with black hair and blue eyes.

"I see you're all tired of hearing the basics, so why don't I let you all see the ingredients yourselves?"

Slughorn waved his wand, and the ingredients he'd just been speaking of flew from the storage cabinet to each table. John was impressed by such casual magic, as he was still a bit new to this whole 'magic' business and the adults tended to make it look so easy. True, he hadn't tried much on his own, but he was impressed nonetheless. John briefly wondered how much time was left in class, but his attention was diverted with the odd flowers now in front of him. Some of them looked just like normal flowers, but others were a bit more magical and sparkly. A hand interrupted his viewing of the flowers, and John traced the arm to its owner. It was his table partner, though he supposed he should've expected that.

"What's your name?" He asked, and John was startled by his friendly face.

"Er, John Smith?" John shook his hand.

"I'm Herbert Davidson-Moore." Herbert introduced himself.

"Can I just call you Herbie?" John asked, not a fan of long names.

"Yeah, sure." Herbie laughed.

The somewhat awkward air between them had dissipated, and they sifted through the potions ingredients. John got bored quickly, wishing he could just make potions already. He glanced to the side, trying to gauge Herbie's interest in the subject. His face was hard to read, as he maintained the smile. There were only a few minutes left in class, and John politely said goodbye to Herbie when the bell rang. He went over to his room-mates after getting his bookbag.

"You alright, mate?" James asked as they began walking to charms.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" John adjusted his bag.

"Because you got paired off with a _Slytherin_." Sirius practically spat the word out.

"I thought he was nice." John shrugged.

"What if he's just pretending to be so he can strike when you least expect it?" Peter squeaked.

"Oh come on, that's ridiculous."

"I wouldn't underestimate them if I were you." Sirius warned.

"Yeah, well if he tries anything I'll hex him so hard he can't walk straight." John huffed, crossing his arms.

"Good on you, mate." James patted his back.

Charms with Hufflepuff was uneventful. They received much of the same first day information they had from Potions, albeit with a different subject matter. After lunch, Defense Against the Dark Arts was similarly boring. The only interesting moment in classes was when one of the Hufflepuff girls cast a spell on one of the plants in Herbology that caused it to turn bright pink. James and Sirius confronted her afterwards, wanting to know what spell she'd used. They had a mischievous glint in their eyes that John was unsure he wanted to encourage.

A week later, the robes of every Slytherin entering the Great Hall had mysteriously turned bright pink. Sirius and James were mysteriously absent from double Potions on Friday. The Slytherin robes had returned to their original colouration, and Professor Slughorn was mildly disgruntled. When John asked Herbie what he thought of the ordeal, the taller boy only smiled and shrugged. It was the first class they would be brewing an actual potion, so John had no more time to dwell on the matter. His two troublemaking friends shuffled into the classroom late, scrambling to try and catch up with the potion-making progress of the rest of the class.

John and Herbie managed to follow the instructions on the board adequately. Their potion was not outstanding, but both of them were satisfied with the outcome. James and Sirius, despite their lateness, had a better potion than Remus and Peter. The true stars of the class, however, were Evans and Snape. Their potion was perfect in every way, and Slughorn awarded ten points to both Gryffindor and Slytherin. James grumbled about Slytherin getting points. Peter optimistically pointed out that Gryffindor received points as well. Sirius proposed finding some way to sabotage Snape's potion.

It had been several weeks since starting school, and classes were finally beginning to teach them interesting subject matter. Potions was a slow class, but the others had already begun with spellcasting and practical application. They'd learned the levitation charm, and turned matches into needles (though John wasn't particularly good at the second one). In Defence Against the Dark Arts, they'd learned of various low-danger creatures, such as gnomes and doxies. The only class John could say he was entirely bored with was History of Magic, but he would be lying if he said he hadn't been warned.

The five first year Gryffindor boys had grown closer. James and Sirius had the most obviously close relationship, but Peter was always tagging along with their antics as well. Remus would join in as well and, despite any initial assumption that he was a responsible kid, it was clear he was the reason they didn't get caught with their mischief. John was not much of a prankster, and found himself feeling somewhat out of place with the four of them.

He'd taken to spending time with Herbie, who he realized was still definitely a Slytherin despite his friendly manner. This was most evident when he was playing chess, as John had never seen him lose a match. Another person he'd spend time with was one Lily Evans. He'd taken her up on her offer to hang out with her if he ever wanted to get away from his room-mates. She was often with Snape, who had been against the thought of John calling him by his first name. John, Lily, Snape, and Herbie would sit outside in the courtyard to do homework when classes weren't in session.

Lily and Herbie got along surprisingly well, as he enjoyed brushing her hair. He'd explained that he had an older sister at home, and Lily shared she also had an older sister. The subject seemed to sadden her, so Snape brought up potions, and the group talked about classes until some other, unrelated subject came up. Upon learning that Lily and John were both muggleborn, Herbie shared that he was as well. He was relieved to tell them. Snape seemed slightly uncomfortable in the group, though John couldn't understand why.

Despite having a generally different friend group from his room-mates, John still spent time with them during meals and in classes. He also enjoyed hanging out with them in the dorms, and had succeeded in keeping his secret over the months. Sirius and James had been eager to show off their flying skills during the weekly flying lessons with the Slytherins. John had been impressed by their skills, and lamented his own lack of expertise. Him and Peter were equally terrible, and Remus had an unfortunate case of motion sickness.

Remus also had an unfortunately sickly family. He was frequently being excused from classes to spend time with his mother, or go to a grandparent's funeral. His room-mates worried for him, though Peter often wondered if there were something more going on behind the scenes. James and Sirius told him he was being silly. Remus was unaware of the increasingly ridiculous conspiracy theories Peter thought up. John only wondered if there was any truth to Peter's theories. He didn't know the half of it.

John was convinced Hogwarts was the best school one could possibly go to. Classes were exciting, and meals were delicious. The dorms were ridiculously comfortable, and it felt like home. Time seemed to fly by, and winter break was fast approaching. Sirius had immediately signed to stay at the castle, and James sent a letter home asking his parents if he could stay as well. They told him it was important to experience at least one Hogwarts Christmas, but they hoped he would spend the holidays with them again. When questioned, James briefly mentioned how old his parents were, and quickly moved on from that conversation topic. Peter had begged and begged to stay, but his parents insisted he return home. Remus didn't even consider staying. John signed up to stay without even asking his parents, as he didn't wish to be forced into a dress. Lily had gone home as well, and John was unsure about Herbie, but he instead hoped the winter break would be pleasant even with the more rambunctious members of his friend groups.

* * *

 ** _Word Count: 2,361_**

 **I'm actually struggling a lot to write this fic... I don't know why that is. Maybe it's because I'm still in first year, and not much happens in first year.**

 **I have also only received One OC from you guys and that makes me sad! While it's true my irl friends have given me OCs (that's where Herbie came from), I really want to include you guys's OCs as well!**

 **Here is the blank template if you're interested, more details on what I want for each section are in chapter one.**

Name:

Gender/Sexuality:

Birthdate: (to be the same year as the Marauders it needs to be a 1959-1960 birthday)

Blood Status:

Wand: (wood/core/length/flexibility)

Appearance:

Preferred House:

Personality:

Values:

Backstory:

 **I AM ALSO IN SEARCH OF DADA PROFESSORS! Like, seriously, I didn't make any oops? Fill out the same template for a DADA professor, just leave out the Preferred House section.**

 **Anyways I hope you enjoyed this despite it being kinda 'eh' in my opinion, I'd love it if you could leave a review of some sort because that would tell me there are people who are actually interested in this fic.**


	5. Chapter 5

John woke up the morning of Monday, December 20th with some confusion. James was already awake, like usual, but the room was still quiet. It took him a moment to remember winter break had begun, and he didn't actually need to be awake for classes. He pulled a thick jumper on before getting out of bed and heading over to where James was sitting on the floor. There was a transfiguration book open in front of him, and several pieces of parchment scattered about. John sat across from him, yawning slightly.

"What's all this?"

"Homework?" James said, but John didn't recognize what the open book was talking about. He raised a brow.

"I thought you finished your Transfiguration homework already."

"Well, yeah, I have." James admitted. "It's extra work. McGonagall said if I did this I wouldn't have to serve detention for that time I set up all those exploding balloons in her classroom."

"And you just felt like writing an essay instead of serving an hour of detention?"

"See, look at it this way. I get to learn something for future pranks now." James said.

"Ah. Thank you for enlightening me." John rolled his eyes. "Jeeze, how do you even understand this stuff?" He asked as he picked up the book James was using as his primary reference.

"I mean, it's not too hard, just some theoretical stuff on Gamp's laws." James said.

"I guess I'm just rubbish then." John pouted, putting the book back down.

"Wha- no, shut it." James sat up straight. "You're not rubbish, you're just a muggleborn. It's not like you knew any of this stuff beforehand."

"I mean, I guess." John rolled his eyes.

"You're great at Potions and Herbology." James told him. "Mum says we've all got our strengths and weaknesses." John laughed.

"You're right, you're right." He conceded. "It's just easy to get scared about that. Most pure-bloods are pretty, er…"

"They're a bunch of slimy gits is what they are." Sirius grumbled from his bed, and John whipped his head in his direction, not having realized he'd awoken.

"Took you long enough to wake up!" James laughed. "I thought you'd died!"

"If only." Sirius rolled out of bed. "I got a rude awakening from your voice instead."

James squawked, offended. Sirius only laughed at him, and John smiled in amusement. It was strange, not having Remus or Peter around. Both boys were rather quiet, yes, but they still brought a different dynamic to conversations. Sirius went to shower, and James went about putting his extra Transfiguration work away. Now that all three of them were up, there was no chance of him getting any of it done. John had a pleasant conversation with him about the giant squid before James started brainstorming prank ideas. Though he tried his best to contribute to the conversation, John wasn't exactly the most prank-savvy.

When Sirius exited the shower, he joined the conversation with much better ideas than John had. The three of them went down to breakfast, somehow on the subject of flooding the dungeons. It wasn't a practical conversation. None of them knew how to flood the dungeons, but James had a grand time joking about Snape's hair contaminating the water with its grease. John didn't feel the need to defend the Slytherin boy. He was somewhat nasty and unpleasant to be around, and John had the suspicion he only hung around because he enjoyed being around Lily.

Lily had gone home for the winter break, as had Herbie. The only member of that friend group who'd stayed at Hogwarts for the break was Snape. John didn't make a point of trying to talk to him. He instead had fun getting closer to his two remaining room-mates. Though he'd already known basic information about his friends before, it was over this break that he really grew close to them.

James Fleamont Potter was a spoiled boy. His parents were already in their seventies, and he was an only child. They called him their little miracle, as they tried for years and years to have a child and had given up when his mother, Euphemia, became pregnant. Fleamont Henry Potter was the maker of the famous Sleekeazy's Hair Potion; ironic, as James himself was constantly messing his own hair up. The Sleekeazy company had granted Fleamont a small fortune, and the three of them lived in great comfort. Anything James wanted, he got. He got the latest model of broom, the latest fashions, the latest _everything_. Even his aviator glasses were only a few months old. John suspected James didn't realize his privilege. He often assumed things of others, or suggested solutions that wouldn't work for those less fortunate than he. It didn't come from a malicious place, but John thought he needed to be taught a few life lessons.

Sirius Orion Black was not a spoiled boy. He held great contempt for all Slytherins; his family in particular. There had been moments he went on terribly passionate rants of how much he hated his mother and his family's view of blood purity. He was rebellious to a fault, and showed great fascination for muggle culture. This was in direct contrast to his family, and it was clear his mother loathed him almost as much as he loathed her. He acted as if nothing bothered him, but if the late nights in the common room spent burning letters from home said anything, John would say he had more going on within. Though Sirius was incredibly smart, he barely tried in classes and didn't care for doing his homework.

John found himself to be envious of both. They had much more confidence than he had, and were smart in a supremely careless way. Nearly all of their classmates loved them, and they relished in the attention. They had a reputation, and had made names for themselves as fun-loving pranksters. Many of their pranks were harmless and well-received, if the person being pranked had a fair sense of humor. Some were more humiliating. These pranks were generally pulled on Slytherins; Severus Snape in particular. Lily would try to stop them, when she was around.

The other boys in the first year Gryffindor boys dorm of 1971-72 were not as known for their pranking abilities. Others viewed Peter as an awkward tagalong, not very skilled at magic or anything in particular. They were unaware of his surprising skill with chess, or penchant for weaseling himself and his friends out of tight situations. His home life was slightly strained, as his mother and father's relationship was on the verge of falling apart. Peter insisted it didn't bother him, and that he would prefer they just get on with it and get a divorce so he never had to see his father again. Pushing his thoughts of family life away, he idolized Sirius and James. He fed off of their accomplishments in a way, though the others made a point not to treat him as anything less than them.

Remus was a difficult case, as none of them truly knew anything about him. He was a half-blood with a history of family illness and a great number of scars on his face. There were heavy bags under his dull green eyes, and his brown hair was thin and already showed signs of stress in a few stray grey hairs. His health was precarious, and it seemed he could be perfectly healthy one week and nearly bedridden the next. Sirius often joked he should've been placed in Ravenclaw thanks to his bookwormish attitude, but Remus was the true genius behind many of their pranks. His humor was subtle, and he almost never got caught because nobody believed he would break a single rule. This was all they knew about Remus. They weren't sure if his father was still in the picture, or what home life was like other than his mother being sick.

John supposed he didn't talk much of his family either. The others knew the two of them were muggle doctors. They knew he had a childhood friend named Allie. What they didn't know was that he'd been born with an entirely different name and biological sex. John didn't want them to know this, and dreaded the start of puberty. Part of him wished he could stay eleven forever. The other part of him realized how awkward that would be. He hadn't bothered to purchase an owl, as he feared his parents writing a letter addressed to the name he hated would out him to his friends. The Sorting Hat had told him he couldn't hide his secret forever, but he very much wished he could.

Apart from his own personal problems, he'd initially been excited for the subject of Transfiguration as he'd been interested in body modification. He quickly realized the subject wouldn't help him with this in the slightest (not for years at least), but still found it fascinating despite his utter lack of skill in it. Strangely, he was the only one of them in the room who was particularly skilled at Potions, and John suspected this stemmed primarily from his prior knowledge of cooking and medicines. His mother had wanted him to be the perfect housewife, and had taught him many of her own mother's recipes. While he wasn't a huge fan of cooking and cleaning, they were chores he wasn't unskilled with. He also found it quite simple to grasp the information they learned in Herbology, as it was easy to relate to Potions (which he was already quite good at).

Charms and Defence Against the Dark Arts were both subjects he couldn't say he was good or bad at. It was in Defence, however, that he began to hear whispers of violent attacks against muggles and muggleborns across the British Isles. Half-blooded students were the first to bring the subject up, as they had both a magical parent to inform them of the magical world, and a muggle parent to be concerned for. Upon learning of the attacks, muggleborns would concern themselves with this as well, worried for the safety of their family. Most pure-bloods thought nothing of it. John knew Sirius and James hadn't bothered to mention it at any time, and his other two half-blooded friends simply didn't feel the need to discuss such subjects when they could be discussing ideas for pranks.

John wondered what Herbie and Lily thought of the whole thing. They were both muggleborn like him, and hadn't known a thing about these attacks before arriving at Hogwarts either. He didn't want to bring it up himself, but he still wondered. Their conversations hadn't strayed in that direction yet, so he decided he would wait until they did. Severus Snape's blood status was unknown to the rest of them. It was something he kept quiet about. While John wasn't a huge fan of Snape, he supposed he did understand why.

Blood tensions ran high within the magical community. Pure-blood supremacy ran rampant, and pure-blood students often clashed with those they deemed beneath them. These tensions were most prevalent in Slytherin house, as most ancient pure-blood families tended to have a history of being sorted into Slytherin. Salazar Slytherin himself wanted to keep those of muggle heritage out of Hogwarts. As the founders were long dead and could no longer sorted students personally, however, there were plenty of muggleborns and half-bloods in Slytherin thanks to the Sorting Hat.

Pure-blood supremacists weren't limited to Slytherin house, unfortunately. John had met more than a few older Gryffindor students who looked down on those they deemed beneath them in terms of blood status. Even some teachers showed a clear preference for pure-blooded students. Professor Slughorn claimed not to discriminate, but was always genuinely surprised when a muggleborn or half-blood student showed exceptional promise in his class. This didn't stop him from recognizing their skills, but John didn't think he would ever forget the unbridled rage Lily had expressed upon his clear shock at her perfect potion.

The house with the least blood tension was Hufflepuff, followed by Ravenclaw. Both houses greatly valued acceptance, and he'd never heard of a Hufflepuff who was a blood purist. There had been a few Ravenclaws here and there, but those had been rare cases.

Every house values dedication, ambition, and drive in some way. The daring and nerve to perform almost implausible feats to achieve a goal. The dedication and patience to see a plan through to the end. The endless amount of research one could do to learn of their interests. The cunning and resourcefulness to look at problems from different angles and find a way to make things work in the way they desire. They all had that in common, in a way. Each house was similar, just as people are all people. John wondered why the fabricated pureness of their blood should have any impact on how they treat each other.

"You alright there, mate?" James's voice jolted John out of his internal monologue.

"What?"

"You were staring at your pancakes for about twenty minutes. We were starting to place bets on if you'd ever snap out of it." Sirius laughed.

"Oh." John rubbed his face. "Whoops."

"What's on your mind, anyways?" James asked, drinking what John presumed was pumpkin juice.

"Oh, you know. Just wondering who the next poor sap you'll embarrass will be." John said pleasantly, though he hadn't been thinking of that in the slightest.

"Him." James and Sirius point at each other simultaneously.

John laughed as the two began having a very silly argument about who could prank who best. He didn't need to worry about violence and discrimination. He was only eleven, and letting your childhood pass by too quickly was something one could never amend. The young boy decided to enjoy spending time with his friends while he still could, political tensities be damned.

* * *

 ** _Word Count: 2,319_**

 **I'm not gonna lie, this chapter really ran away from me. This story is still difficult for me to write because I jumped in without fleshing out the details of the plot for part one. The main points of interest for me with the Marauder's era are the political climate of the time (with blood tensions running high and the threat of war looming overhead), and the internal complexities of the children themselves. We know plenty about Sirius, James, and Remus's backgrounds and family lives, but nothing about Peter's. I chose to make his home life strained, because I want to have different dynamics for each character's family life. James has adoring parents; Sirius has pretty much abusive parents; Remus has caring parents who are trying their best with what little they have; Peter's parents don't care for each other but his mother cares for him. As the group is still building trust and getting to know each other, I can't really write all of the interesting character relationships between them, so that part of the story will probably start in second year (which is definitely more fleshed out in terms of plot than first year).**

 **Sorry for rambling there! Having John ramble through all of that information in this chapter helped me sort of flesh things out and figure out where I'm going with it, so hopefully it won't be difficult for me to continue writing this story. I have big plans for it, and while I'm still kind of frustrated with the lack of commentary on it I do understand that not everyone is a huge fan of OC stories and I'm only on chapter 5.**

 **I hope you enjoyed this ramble-y mess of a chapter! If you could leave a review I would be _so_ happy to talk to you because it can really help get my ideas flowing. I love you all, and hope to see you next time!**


	6. Chapter 6

If one would normally classify James as an insufferable morning person, John wasn't entirely sure what to call him now that it was Christmas morning. John hadn't been planning on waking himself until at least ten in the morning. James had other plans. James thought it was perfectly reasonable to wake up at four on Christmas morning. John groaned and covered his head with his duvet. He wasn't the only one to do so, as James was trying to get Sirius out of bed. Sirius sighed an excessively dramatic sigh as he sat up.

"Blimey, mate. The presents are still gonna be there in a few hours."

"But- but it's Christmas!" James insisted. " _Christmas_ , Sirius!"

"And I got a dusty old book about pure-blood history." Sirius rolled his eyes, collapsing back on his bed. "Big whoop."

"Wh- aw, come on! John, back me up!"

"I don't really celebrate Christmas." John said, forcing himself to sit up as he rubbed his eyes. James seemed to take this as a personal attack, and he clutched where his heart would be.

"Don't celebrate _Christmas?_ But the _presents,_ and the _tree,_ and the _decorations,_ and _family!_ "

"My family can bugger off. I'd be happier without them anyways." Sirius grumbled.

"Aw, come on. We're your family, right John?"

"Er, sure?" John blinked, elegantly falling off the bed as he failed to stand properly.

"Get up, little brother. There are presents to be had!" James pulled John to his feet against his will before going over to Sirius, smiling at him with eyes that seemed too large for his face.

"I mean, I guess it might be fun…" Sirius couldn't help but smile a little bashfully, his cheeks colouring. He seemed strangely hopeful, and John wondered how bad his family was.

"Y'know, I don't think I should be the little brother when I'm taller than both of you." John huffed, ruining any sentimental moment that could have happened.

"Oh yeah? When's your birthday?" James challenged.

"... July twelfth…" He mumbled.

"What was that?"

"I said July twelfth, alright?" John huffed, looking away as he dug a jumper out of his trunk and pulled it over his head, trying to hide his red face.

"I was born on March twenty-seventh!" James laughed triumphantly.

"You two are like babies. I was born November third." Sirius crossed his arms, feeling cocky. "Of '59." He added, and James deflated.

"Well that just means you're an old man." John countered. Sirius nearly fell over.

"Oi!" He righted himself, then pointed an accusing finger at him. "Respect your elders!"

John only rolled his eyes before letting out a large yawn. He found himself wishing he could go back to sleep. It was an effort to keep his eyes open, and he wondered if he'd even gotten anything. Allie always used to get him both Hanukkah gifts as well as Christmas gifts, despite her not being particularly religious herself. She would tell him she just liked giving people gifts, and John accepted that. Now that he was at Hogwarts, however, he didn't expect to receive gifts. How would Allie even get them to him? And with his parents not celebrating the holiday either, there really wasn't anyone to give him gifts.

That was why he was surprised to find a sizeable pile of gifts at the end of his bed. It was nothing compared to James's gifts, but it was larger than Sirius's pile. Sirius seemed surprised by the number of gifts he'd received nonetheless, his eyes practically sparkling. He picked up the most boring of the bunch, wrapped in Slytherin colours and decidedly book-shaped, before tossing it away somewhere. It landed with a heavy thud as Sirius sorted through his more interesting gifts. Most of them were from James, though Remus and Peter had also contributed. John suddenly felt guilty for not getting him anything.

"I can't believe it." Sirius grinned. "I've got real presents!" He tore the very shiny Gryffindor wrapping from one of his gifts, laughing loudly upon seeing a brand new copy of Quidditch Through the Ages.

"Peter asked me what to get you. I told him it was the only book I've ever seen you read willingly." James snickered, and Sirius was already on his next gift.

"And Remus got me chocolate!" It was only a simple bar, but Sirius was so giddy at receiving gifts that he didn't care. "It's _muggle_ chocolate!"

"Did he leave you a note or anything?" John asked.

"Er, let me check." Sirius looked more carefully, realizing Peter also probably gave him a note. He didn't bother reading that one out loud though. "'Dear Sirius, I hope your holidays are going well and you haven't murdered James. Signed, Remus.'"

"Why would you murder me?"

"I dunno, maybe for waking us up at four in the morning? The sun hasn't even risen yet." John huffed.

"Man, I love this stuff." Sirius said, with a mouth full of chocolate. "And I'm gonna hang the wrapper in my room, tell my mum it's muggle chocolate. She'll blow a gasket."

"You're making me feel bad for not getting you anything." John pouted.

"Well, I didn't get you lot anything either. My parents haven't given me any money since I got sorted into Gryffindor." Sirius shrugged.

"Blimey, am I the only one of us who bought gifts?"

"Well, I don't even celebrate Christmas." John pointed out.

He picked up one of his presents as James and Sirius continued to chat. It was lumpy, and wrapped with newspaper. He assumed it was from Allie, and had to wonder how in the world she managed to get her presents to him. John spotted a comic, and took care not to damage the paper. He found himself missing some parts of muggle life as he realized this was the first time he'd seen Rupert Bear since going to Hogwarts. Then he remembered all the dresses he was forced to wear in primary school, and he was glad to be away from that.

John put the newspaper aside, then saw his present was a tee shirt. It had the Beatles printed on it, and John smiled. He looked at the rest of his gifts and realized there were eight left from Allie, and suddenly wondered if he was supposed to open them in a specific order. They were all wrapped with newspaper, as Allie never bothered buying wrapping paper when there were free alternatives lying about. It was easy to set those aside and John noticed one of them had a card taped to it, made of simple construction paper. The paper was orange.

 _Heya John!_

 _I miss you bunches, everything is soooo boring around here without you. Remember when we used to get all those acorns and throw them at bullies? That was so fun, I miss that. But next year I'll be going to a super fun boarding school and I'll get to tell you all kinds of super fun stories! I wanted to send you your presents sooner but mum didn't let me. I also wanted to write to you sooner but mum also didn't let me do that either! How rude. I hope you're having fun though!_

 _Love, Allie_

John smiled at the letter. It was sort of all over the place, but then, so was Allie. There were several parts where she'd scribbled out her mistakes, and John found it endearing. He missed her, though he tried not to think of her too often as he'd rather avoid homesickness. James would get homesick towards the beginning of the year, though that had died down. Sirius never got homesick, though this was understandable as he'd told the others he hated his family. Peter only missed his mother, and Remus never commented on the subject. John shook himself, looking over at James and Sirius.

He'd never seen Sirius look so ecstatic about something. The older boy never got particularly excited about grades. There was something to be said of his joy for pranks, but that couldn't compare to the grin he had on his face now. Sirius was happy with every gift he received, barring the book he'd thrown away from his parents. It brought a smile to John's face, and he resolved to properly get him a late present. Maybe he could find the kitchens? It was an elusive room none of them had been able to locate yet. Perhaps he was being too ambitious. He'd think of something eventually, so he decided not to strain his brain just then.

Not even James showing off his many gifts could put a damper on Sirius's spirit, and John couldn't help smiling. He let himself be pulled into the conversation as the three of them opened their gifts, migrating to the centre of the room. It was nearly six in the morning by the time they finished, and John let out a not-so-subtle yawn. He got to his feet for the briefest of moments before collapsing onto his bed. Waking up at four in the morning had done him no favors, and the little energy he'd had was spent.

"John's got the right idea, mate."

"Sirius, don't leave me!" There was the audible sound of a certain someone falling onto his bed, and James sighed with more emotion than was necessary. "It's only six…" James grumbled, sitting on his own bed.

"And you woke us up at four. I'm _tired_ , Jamesie." Sirius already seemed half asleep.

"Well you're just- you're just an old… old man." James's yawn took over his entire face.

"Go to sleep, you big baby." John said.

James was unable to protest, as the warm sheets seemed very welcoming. The exhaustion of his room-mates was contagious. Next year though. Next year they'd better be ready. First-years may not be allowed brooms, but Merlin knows James Potter would drag everyone out to play Christmas Quidditch. It was like normal quidditch, but with confusing and nonsensical rules. Oddly enough, his parents had never wanted to play it with him…

John, of course, was not thinking about why James's seventy-year-old parents didn't want to play strange quidditch with him. He was sleeping. The rest of the holidays would pass without much event, though the Christmas and New Year's feasts were spectacular. When Remus and Peter returned to school on January 5th with the rest of the students, they were greeted by James and Sirius bragging about the exciting holidays spent at Hogwarts. John was then outed for not celebrating Christmas. Peter looked at him with shock, though Remus didn't seem to care. John thought he looked a little tired.

"You two have got to stay next year!" Sirius insisted, wide smile on his face. "You really don't know what you missed out on!"

"I wish I could have stayed…" Peter whined, shoulders slumped as he sat in one of the comfortable armchairs by the fire in the Gryffindor common room.

"Well there's no reason you can't next time, right? If you ask your mum right now I bet you she'd say yes." James told him, ruffling his hair. Peter looked like he was unsure whether to appreciate or detest the hair-ruffling.

"Hmm…" Remus looked down at his feet, fiddling with his frayed sleeve. "I… may be able to stay next year…" He said hesitantly. "Hold on."

"Well, I know I'll definitely be staying again." John smiled, filling the space as Remus searched for something in his trunk.

"I'm never going home for the holidays. I wish I could stay here during the summer, too." Sirius sighed.

"I think I probably shouldn't stay for Christmas third year." James commented. "My folks miss me."

"I can stay next year." Remus said, putting something back in his trunk. John wondered what he'd been checking.

The rest of the day was filled aimlessly. On one hand, John wanted to find Herbie and Lily, but on the other hand he had no way of finding his Slytherin friend and he was unsure if Lily would be in her dorm room or not. He enjoyed his time spent with the other boys, and loved how easy it was to spend time with them. It was so different from the way he struggled back home, though he knew that was because back home he was a girl. Not wanting to think of that, he focused on the conversation the others were having of using library books as transportation devices. They were a fun bunch. He hoped they never found out about him. It was a foolish hope, but he hoped it nonetheless.

* * *

 ** _Word Count: 2,094_**

 **Hey, I'm really really sorry this took so long to write, and that it's short, and that it's not that well organized. I just had a really tough couple of weeks because I ran out of testosterone so my depression spiked, but I got 8 weeks worth of it today and I did my shot, so hopefully I'll be able to write more!**

 **I'm still having story-specific motivation issues with this one, not many of you have sent in OCs, and I can't do DADA classes because I didn't come up with any teachers and none of you sent any in, but oh well!**

 **I have thought of a Part 1.5 of this story, so to speak. This is a 3 part fic, yes, but the 1.5 would be from a different character's point of view and would allow me to keep up with OCs that would otherwise be left behind in part 2! I don't wanna spoil things here in the Author's Note but if you want to know more details I'd be more than happy to talk about it with you through PM!**

 **Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter even though it's really a mess;; I really really would appreciate any reviews because validation will keep me motivated to write more, and I hope to see you next time! Bye, I love you guys!**


	7. Chapter 7

"Do you think he's doing something illegal?"

"Peter, he's visiting his sick mother, get back to work." John huffed, not in the mood for Peter's conspiracy theories. Transfiguration was kicking him while he was down, and it was the reason he was down in the first place!

"What if he has a point though?" Sirius asked, looking up from the tennis ball he was tossing between his hands. John had managed to get it for him by owling Lily with one of the school owls after Christmas.

"What, you think Remus is sneaking out to drink firewhiskey and charm muggles?" James asked with a laugh. He pushed his glasses up before returning to scribbling out vague prank ideas on an otherwise blank piece of parchment.

"Not like _that_ kind of illegal!" Peter squeaked, somewhat offended. "I just mean sometimes when he comes back, there's another scar on his face."

"Merlin knows how many scars he's got hiding under his robes. I bet he's got loads." Sirius said.

"As fun as it is to entertain the thought of one of our friends doing… doing _wizard drugs_ or whatever, I'm going to fail this Transfiguration test if I can't study, so will you lot shut it?"

"I can help if you want." James offered.

The bespectacled boy put his quill down and moved to look at the section John was attempting to study. It was a pleasant evening towards the end of February. Snow coated the castle grounds and continued to fall, so most students stayed inside now that classes were finished for the day and there was no need to go to the greenhouses. The four of them were by the window of the common room, where the armchairs weren't quite as comfortable as the ones by the fire. Some of the older students had already claimed those for the night. Remus was not with them. He'd left the previous night to spend time with his mother, and would likely be back on Thursday if his usual pattern stayed true.

As it was currently Tuesday, he wouldn't be back for a couple days. John was just glad James was so skilled in Transfiguration. It was his weakest subject, though it was also his favorite. He hoped he would be able to understand it better if he kept working at it, but it was more than a little frustrating. The only two classes he could say he was good at were Potions and Herbology. He suspected this was due to his mother attempting to teach him how to be a housewife. Brewing potions wasn't so different from cooking; the ingredients were just a little different. Herbology, on the other hand, was likely easy for him thanks to its direct relation to potions. Many of the plants they studied were also potion ingredients.

Sirius sighed loudly, complaining that James was no longer giving him any attention. James ignored his complaints, causing the other boy to pout. The older boy couldn't understand why the two of them would want to be studying transfiguration when they didn't even have the class the next day. After several minutes of being badgered by Sirius, James seized his tennis ball and threw it with such incredible aim that he managed to chuck it all the way across the common room, through the opening entrance of the portrait, and into the hallway. Sirius blinked owlishly torn between being impressed by the throw and infuriated that his ball had been thrown into the hallway. He smacked James upside the head before running off after it.

"You'd make a great chaser." Peter laughed.

"Trust me, I know. I used to be in the little-league quidditch team back home and I was their _best_ chaser. All the other blokes were like babies on twigs compared to me." James boasted.

" _All_ of you were just babies on twigs." John pointed out, but James only shrugged, his pride undamaged.

"You're a twat." Sirius told James as he rejoined the three of them, ignoring the conversation they were having. He failed to keep his grip on the tennis ball, however, and James expertly threw it again as someone left the common room. "POTTER!" Sirius shrieked as he chased after the ball once more.

"He's like a dog. Really loyal, kind of annoying but loveable, likes to chase tennis balls." James said with amusement.

"I'm going to fail transfiguration." John said with misery.

James remembered he was supposed to be helping John with his homework and the two of them got back to it. Peter searched through a book on cults, still trying to figure out Remus's supposed secret. Thankfully, the mousy boy was being near silent, so John was able to focus entirely on James. He was very passionate about the subject, and John felt envious of his understanding. As his unofficial lesson went on, he began to get the hang of it. Sirius was gone for an unknown stretch of time, but John hadn't been keeping track of the passing minutes so he hadn't a clue how long it was. His tennis ball was nowhere to be seen, and there was frown on his face; a furrow in his brow.

"Maybe there _is_ something wrong with Remus." Sirius said as he sat down, his voice subdued. His friends turned to look at him, the tasks they'd been performing seeming unimportant then.

"What do you mean? Did you see something?" James asked, worried for his friends.

"Not really. The ball went down one of the moving staircases so I chased after it, but it fell off and I went looking for it. I wound up looking in the hospital wing because the doors were open so I thought maybe it rolled in."

"And…?" John raised a brow, not sure how that had anything to do with Remus.

"One of the beds by Madam Pomfrey's office had the curtains drawn. I heard crying and then Remus's voice… saying stuff…" He hesitated.

"What did he say?" James asked, leaning insistently into Sirius's personal space.

"He was saying… 'It hurts, please, make it stop.' And he called for his mum. I didn't catch the rest of it. Madam Pomfrey noticed me and chased me out." Sirius was perturbed.

"Well, we've got to go check on him." James said, standing up. John stood as well, agreeing with this motion.

"No, we can't. Madam Pomfrey just chased Sirius out, I doubt Remus is allowed to have visitors." Peter pointed out.

"Alright…" James frowned, looking hesitant but realizing Peter was right.

"Did you find your ball though?" John asked, hoping the lighter subject matter would lessen the damper that had been placed on all their moods.

"Oh, bugger!" Sirius shouted, jumping to his feet and running off again.

"Remus likes chocolate." John said. "I wish we could get him some."

"Oh! I bet if we find an older student who went to Honeydukes we could buy some off them!" James said.

John nodded eagerly then looked to Peter to ask if he would join them. Peter closed his book, the amount of reading he'd been doing starting to take a toll on his eyes. The three of them asked around the Gryffindor common room with little luck. Any older students who had been to Hogsmeade the previous weekend either hadn't been to Honeydukes, hadn't decided to buy chocolate at Honeydukes, or had already eaten all their chocolate from Honeydukes. Not one to be deterred, John took the lead and said they should leave the common room to find more people to ask.

The first person they saw was a brown haired Hufflepuff boy who John and James couldn't decide whether he was old enough or not. Peter was unable to make up his mind and failed to contribute to the conversation. The three of them looked at where he was walking up ahead in the hallway. John quickly explained the rules of Rock, Paper, Scissors to James (the pureblooded boy had never heard of it before) and they played to decide who would go talk to the Hufflepuff. James was too enthusiastic with his win and John jogged to catch up with the subject.

He introduced himself and received the name Phillip Okal in response. John asked if he was a third year or not, and when he learned he was exactly a third year, proceeded to question whether or not he'd been to Honeydukes. Unfortunately, like many of the Gryffindors he'd asked, Okal hadn't any chocolate with him. He apologized and John returned to his friends, dejected. They continued on their quest, desperately wishing more people would be out of their common rooms. Peter wondered where all the Gryffindors were coming and going when there wasn't anybody in the hallways. Neither of his friends could provide an answer.

They bumped into Filch and Mrs. Norris and, despite having not broken any rules or tracked any mud into the castle, hastened to run away from the terrible two. After what felt like hours but was only a few minutes, they neared the library. James suggested perhaps they could find someone in there. John nodded as Peter gulped, not wanting to face Madam Pince. They didn't want to speak in her presence, so they regretfully walked past many of the tables full of students. One of the first people they saw as they went deeper into the library was a Ravenclaw girl with curly hair. The three boys played Rock, Paper, Scissors again and John wondered why his luck was so horrible.

"Er, excuse me…" John whispered, but she was absorbed in her book. "Hello?" She jolted when he tapped her shoulder and he took his hand back. "Sorry, I just wanted to ask-"

"Are you a pureblood?" The girl cut him off.

"Wh- No?" John frowned. "I just-"

"Mm." The girl returned her eyes to her book.

"Hello?"

Deducing he was being ignored, John returned to his companions with a slump in his shoulders. James patted him on the back and they left the library, figuring it probably wasn't the best place to look. Peter suggested they go back to the common room, as they'd had little luck at that point, but John and James refused. They wandered about the castle without strategy, and were on the ground level when they spotted a somewhat tall Slytherin girl heading down the stairs they had been about to walk up. Her eyes were an interesting shade of violet, though James and Peter showed no signs of surprise so he supposed it was just a normal wizard thing. James blinked as he saw what looked like a chocolate frog container poking out of her bookbag.

"I want to ask, but she's a _Slytherin_." James whispered.

"I think she looks nice." Peter said, then squeaked at the look James shot him. "But it's probably just a trick!"

"You two are absurd." John rolled his eyes and calling out to her as she approached. "Excuse me, miss?" She looked at him, suspicious. John couldn't blame her. They'd been whispering judgmentally a few seconds ago.

"Yes?" She asked, stopping next to them and speaking in a voice perhaps a little deeper than he'd expected. John was intimidated by her height and swallowed a lump in his throat. She had to be an entire foot taller than him! A few years really made a huge difference at that age and he wondered how old she was. Fifteen? Sixteen?

"I-I was just wondering if- well we were looking for some chocolate so our friend could feel better but we couldn't find anybody with any…" He explained, his eyes flicking down to her bag. She pulled the pentagonal box out, looking at it.

"Well…" She hesitated, so John continued speaking.

"We can pay you for it! We just really want to do something nice for him because he's not doing well…" John looked down at the ground. Peter shuffled his feet beside him, and James pointedly dug around in his pockets for spare change.

"Oh, you don't have to pay me." She smiled at the three of them, holding the chocolate frog out to John. "Tell your friend to get better soon, yeah?"

"Thank you so much!" John grinned, taking the frog. The girl continued walking and John regretted not asking her name. Something about her made him want to know more.

"I can't believe it. Slytherin chocolate." James said, interrupting his thoughts.

"It's just chocolate! I swear, you're absurd."

They climbed the stairs all the way back to Gryffindor tower as it was getting sort of late. When they entered the dorm room, Sirius was sitting on his bed and glaring at the now-open doorway. He accused them of abandoning him. The tennis ball was on his bedside table, and James went over to pat his head. Sirius practically snarled at him, and James took his hand back. They all returned to their respective dorm beds. John filled Sirius in on what they'd been up to as he changed into his pajamas within the safety of his bed curtains. The chocolate frog sat on his trunk, and he planned on trying to visit Remus with it the next day.

He woke up Wednesday morning with positive energy and couldn't even be irritated by James's usual morning antics. Sirius still wasn't happy by the awakening, but that was to be expected. Sirius was never happy when he woke up. John went to shower and get ready for the day, humming to himself as he did so. He was glad the dorm room had its own private bathroom. The thought of a communal bath was terrifying. Peter questioned his good mood when he returned to the room, and John could only shrug. Maybe it was because they had his two favorite classes before lunch.

Not wanting to wait for Sirius to get ready, John skipped down the stairs and made his way toward the Great Hall for breakfast. He bumped into Lily on the way and the two of them wondered what they would be doing in Potions after eating. Their conversation was light and casual. It was a nice break from the constant bickering and antics of his dorm-mates. Potions would have been uneventful had Sirius and James not tossed a piece of preserve-covered bagel into Snape and Lily's potion. The four of them got into a heated argument after Professor Slughorn vanished the ruined potion. It was broken up when each of the people arguing got five house points deducted John and Herbie's potion wound up being the best in class thanks to this incident, though he felt a small amount of guilt when Slughorn awarded him ten house points.

Herbology was dull. All they did was go over the lesson they'd had the previous day. John was more than happy to get out for lunch and he took the opportunity to go to the hospital wing. James, Peter, and Sirius didn't notice him leave them. This was likely due to the mischief they were about to cause. John didn't stick around for that. The hospital wing was empty save for the bed John knew Remus had to be in. Curtains were drawn around it for privacy and John approached, not entirely prepared for seeing the state Remus was in.

Old scars were on his face as always, but there was a bandage that suggested a new one would join the old ones. He was practically covered in bandages. They were fresh and not bloodied, though John suspected they would be sullied mere hours from then. His eyes were closed and his breathing shallow. John wasn't entirely sure what he aimed to do now that he saw him, and he bit his lower lip, looking down at the chocolate frog container in his hand. It felt like a useless gesture now that he'd seen the state Remus was in. Movement came from the bed and Remus sniffed the air as his eyelids slowly pulled themselves apart.

He didn't react for a moment, merely biting his lip and staring at the ceiling again. Remus sniffed again and turned his head in John's direction. His eyes widened and he made what looked like an attempt to hide under the sheets but he quickly gave up. John saw panic set in so he did the first thing he could think of and held the chocolate frog out to him. Remus looked at it, then up at John. Neither of them spoke for a moment.

"Sirius told us you were in here, so I thought I'd bring you chocolate." John said simply. Remus squeezed his eyes shut before opening them again.

"… Thanks." He said with a heavy voice. John wondered if he'd been sedated. "Do they know…?"

"Know what?"

"… Nothing. Nevermind." Remus said. He looked at the chocolate and John put it within arm's reach on the bedside table.

"Well, I've got to get to lunch. I hope you feel better soon." John said, gesturing behind him. "Don't tell Madam Pomfrey I was here, yeah? She's throw a fit!" He joked, but it was lost on Remus.

"Mm…"

"I'll, er… See you around." John said, rubbing the back of his neck.

He left the hospital wing. During his walk to the Great Hall he passed Madam Pomfrey and was glad he'd visited Remus while she'd been getting lunch. While he had wanted to question his friend he knew he wouldn't have been able to give him any proper response. If he remembered any of this by the time he got out of the hospital wing, John would question him. Until then, he would just try and pass his classes. Transfiguration wasn't going to get any easier if he didn't put the effort in, after all.

* * *

 ** _Word Count: 2,964_**

 **Thank you to everyone who has sent me OCs! I really appreciate them. I introduced three of them this chapter; you guys know who you are c: There are more OCs that have been submitted of course, but I went about introducing the older students first so they don't graduate before I get a chance to mention or use them.**

 **Anyways, though the chapter kind of meandered while John, Peter, and James went off in search for chocolate, I think it was very productive otherwise. I'm pretty happy with it, so I'd love it if you could leave a review! I'll probably be finishing up first year within the next chapter (that's my hope, though it might take two chapters if something comes up) and then I'll move on to summer (which will probably take one chapter) then second year! I'll be introducing a Major OC around that time (though I mean she's already been mentioned, but I get to finally properly introduce her) after which I will tell you guys about the story I'll be writing that will probably incorporate the OCs more if you're interested in that.**

 **Due to how I've been writing this fic, I realize it will be extremely difficult for me to have John be good friends with the Marauders as well as having close relationships with the OCs. I know some of you guys are probably here for the Marauders and don't care too much about the multitude of OCs, and some of you are probably fans of OC fics, so I'm hoping separating the two of them will make you guys happier. Part 2 of this series (NOT the side story that I was just talking about) will have a lot of OCs and a very different setting as well so I hope you'll stick around that long!**

 **IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN SENDING IN A DADA TEACHER THAT WOULD BE LOVELY AS WELL!**

 **I won't be able to write any DADA classes without any teachers! Of course, this is a little different from submitting a student. I will ALSO be searching for teachers for the SECOND part of this fic series. If you're interested, here is the template I would like you to use for teachers. Feel free to send in more than one character, and ask me what extra subjects I need teachers for!**

 **EDIT: If you want to submit a teacher who ISN'T a DADA teacher, let me know and I will tell you the extra information you'll need.**

Subject: (I will be accepting 4 DADA teachers and I also need 1 for all the other subjects and then some for the 2nd part but I'll go into more detail later)

Name: (Obviously you can be a little quirky but don't go overboard)

Age: (unlike students, I really don't need the birthdate because that was mainly for figuring out exactly what year they were in)

Blood Status: (probably won't be too important tbh but I like to know)

Wand: (please use Pottermore, this helps me understand the character better)

Appearance: (self-explanatory, it'd help if you also included their sense of fashion because teachers don't have uniforms)

Personality: (include any fun quirks here if there are any, or just go for the basics. I honestly prefer more detail but if you want to go simple that's okay too)

Backstory: (This probably won't get much attention as they are teachers and the story is from the PoV of students but this will help me understand why they are the way they are. You can be tragic or simple, and it's fun for me to read regardless of whether or not the information gets used in the story)

Terms of Job Loss: (This only applies for DADA teachers. The position is cursed. How do you want them to lose their job? Was there something shady going on or did something pop up back home?)

 **I don't think there's anything else I would need to know about a teacher character. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! I know I was cackling when I thought of Sirius fetching the ball. Please leave a review if you'd like, it would mean a lot to me. Hope to see you next time! And I hope I don't update at 3am next time! Haha!**


	8. Chapter 8

The other boys had been miffed to learn John had visited Remus without them. John defended himself by saying he'd only been there for a minute or two before he left. When Remus returned, he looked at John with wariness. It was clear he remembered John seeing him in that awful state. He didn't want to answer questions, but he knew he would have to. John left him alone until the weekend. His attention had been taken by his desperation to receive good marks in Transfiguration. It was only afterwards that he remembered he'd been meaning to speak with his friend.

Remus had gone up to the dormitory to study in peace as the common room was loud and crowded. John watched him go before following after him a few minutes later. The scarred boy was sitting on his bed with his nose buried in his battered potions textbook. It was his worst subject, if John remembered correctly. He glanced up as John opened the door and didn't look back down at his book. The two of them stared at each other for an awkward moment. John cleared his throat and Remus closed his book, fiddling with the end of his jumper.

"I'm… glad you're doing better." John said, sitting on the bed across from Remus. He thought it was Sirius's?

"Er, yeah, loads." Remus responded, avoiding eye contact.

"Did the chocolate help?" John asked. Remus laughed and John could see tension melt away from his face.

"You know what? It actually did. Thanks for that."

"Anytime." John waved him off. "Actually, maybe not anytime. It was kind of hard to find. Can you believe nobody had any chocolate on them?"

"Fools, the lot of 'em." Remus concluded. The two of them were quiet for a moment.

"Remus, why were you in the hospital wing?" John asked, breaching the subject he intended to from the start. "You said you were visiting your mum."

"I…" Remus hesitated, furrowing his brows and looking down at his lap. "I can't tell you."

"Can't tell me? Remus, you had bandages all over your body. What could you have gotten into that Madam Pomfrey couldn't fix with just a wave of her wand?" John questioned, frowning. Remus bit his lip and looked away. "We're _worried_ about you. The only reason the others haven't said anything is because they didn't actually see you lying there."

"Sirius didn't see?"

"No, just me. Madam Pomfrey didn't let anyone see you. The only reason I got the chance was because I got in while she was grabbing lunch." John scooted forward on the bed. "I just want to help you, you know."

"I can't tell you. You'd hate me. Or you'd be scared." Remus said, his voice heavy.

"No I wouldn't." John scoffed. "Unless you're in a murder cult. Doing _wizard drugs_."

"I'm not doing _wizard drugs_." Remus huffed, crossing his arms.

"That sounds like something someone doing wizard drugs would say." James said from the doorway. John and Remus jumped, not having heard his approach. "Relax, I'm just getting a book. Sirius and I were trying to plan out a prank for Snivellous." He rummaged around in his trunk.

"Don't embarrass him too much. He might start doing wizard drugs to distract himself from the pain." John said, a serious expression on his face.

"Oh come on, that's absurd." Remus rolled his eyes. John only laughed.

"Maybe we should trick Professor McGonagall into thinking he does wizard drugs." James said, his voice muffled as he practically crawled inside his trunk in search of the book.

"Why not Slughorn? He's the Slytherin head of house." Remus pointed out.

"Slughorn's a big softie. He likes Snape too much for that to work." John told him.

"Ah." Remus had never noticed Slughorn to be a 'big softie' as he usually had a terrible headache during potions and tried to avoid the dungeons to the best of his ability.

"Found it!" James exclaimed, triumphant as he emerged from his trunk, book in hand.

He bounded down the stairs to rejoin Sirius and an uncomfortable quiet fell between John and Remus. The previous subject matter returned to their minds though they were unsure how to continue that conversation. Remus's eyes flicked back to his potions book, though he didn't really want to read any more of it. John chewed his lip, not knowing what he could possibly say for Remus to tell him what was going on. He wasn't visiting his mother when he left, that was certain, but there were no clues he could think of that told him the truth. John stood from the bed.

"Well, if you ever want to tell me what's wrong, I promise I won't judge you. I won't even tell the others." He said. "I just want to help you."

John left, failing to hear Remus mutter there was nothing he could do to help. He caught a snippet of Sirius and James's conversation and decided not to try and figure out what they planned to do with broccoli, a bar of soap, and a shoelace. His only other friend in Gryffindor was Lily, but the redhead was surrounded by many of her other friends so he elected to leave the common room. It was around midday, though lunch hadn't quite rolled around yet. He wished there were some easy way of asking Herbie where he was, but there wasn't so he wandered about aimlessly. John was bored. It was as simple as that. He couldn't believe it was possible to be bored at Hogwarts, but there he was. A sigh escaped him as he wondered what Allie would do in this predicament. Probably slide down the railings of the moving staircase.

His thoughts were interrupted as he bumped into someone. He expected to be on his way after a quick apology but he was instead knocked to the ground. John looked up from the stone floor to see two Slytherin boys. Their names were Mulciber and Avery if he remembered correctly and he noted Mulciber's drawn wand. John tried to think of a spell to defend himself with before remembering he'd left his wand in the dorm room. It struck him that this was the first time he'd been assaulted by any Slytherins. He scrambled to his feet, balling his hands into fists and accepting that he was outnumbered, but also wanting to punch the smug smirks off of their faces. The two of them jeered at him.

"Aw, look at the poor little mudblood, I think he's forgotten how to talk!" Avery laughed, harsh and short.

"What's he gonna do? Glare us to death?" Mulciber guffawed.

"Was that supposed to be funny?" John asked, wishing he could think of something properly witty to say. He'd probably think of a good comeback a few hours from then and wish he could time travel.

"What an idiot." Avery snickered, and John felt his hands twitch.

"I bet he doesn't even know any spells."

"I don't need any spells to do _this_." He grunted before stepping forward and letting his fist fly. Sure, he'd never thrown a proper punch in his life, but these were purebloods. They'd probably never even seen a fistfight in a movie.

With those two busy with Mulciber's bloody nose, John went on his way, trying to get as much distance between them as possible. Being alone made him anxious now. He realized he'd managed to avoid negative Slytherin interactions until then thanks to almost never being unaccompanied, and now that he wasn't with any of his friends he wasn't sure how safe it was to wander about the castle. It was lucky he'd run into first years, but what if he ran into seventh year blood purists? They probably knew all sorts of dark spells and he didn't want to push his luck. At least Avery and Mulciber only used flipendo. They could've gone for incendio and John would've been in a world of hurt on his way to the hospital wing at that moment.

He realized he'd gotten far from Gryffindor tower. He also realized his hand stung from punching Mulciber but he didn't know what to do about that. John decided to go to the Great Hall because it was relatively close. Lunch was soon anyways, so hopefully other students would be there and he would be in no danger of being assaulted again. None of his friends were there yet so he decided to place himself near the end of the table. It was hard to see the entrance to the room from the Gryffindor table, as it was the furthest from the doors, but he tried his best. He felt awkward sitting alone but he would have felt even more awkward joining a random conversation. This awkwardness was alleviated when he spotted Herbie walk in. He stood and practically ran across the room. Thankfully, his friend had already seen him before going to sit down. John wondered why the Slytherins got to be closest to the door. It seemed unfair.

"Are you alright?" Herbie asked when John had to lean over and put his hands on his knees to catch his breath.

"Just- just give me…" John took a deep breath and stood back up. "Alright. I'm good." He nodded.

"What's wrong with your hand?"

"I… may have punched someone." John admitted, eying the other Slytherins with wariness as Herbie piled a plate high with food. They returned the look.

"Punched someone? That doesn't sound like you." Herbie said, walking away from his table. John breathed a sigh of relief.

"Well, Mulciber and Avery were calling me a mudblood." John said, reaching to take a muffin from Herbie's plate after being given silent permission. "Mulciber also used the knockback jinx on me, so I punched him."

"He's not going to be happy about that." Herbie pointed out.

"I know, but I didn't have my wand."

"You could've just waited for them to move on. You didn't have to fight him. Now he'll see you as a threat and try even harder to bully you."

"Sometimes I forget you're in Slytherin." John huffed. James and Sirius would have given him a high-five for punching Mulciber.

"That's the goal." Herbie laughed. "Make sure nobody takes me seriously so I can strike when they least expect."

"Remind me to never get on your bad side." John shuddered. He waved at Lily as they passed her on their way down the hall. "D'you reckon Lily's getting too popular for us?"

"Oh, definitely. I'm surprised she even looks at Snape anymore."

"It's because she's nice. Snape's kind of a git. She's too good for him."

The two of them made their way to the corridor on the second floor with the view of the castle grounds. They could see lake, the whomping willow, and the forest through the windows. It was their usual lunch spot when they wanted to sit together. Gryffindor and Slytherin had a well-known rivalry so neither of them were exactly welcome at the other's table. John supposed he was okay with only talking to Herbie when they were away from all the people. It would be strange to mix his friends together. He would never want to ask him or Lily to spend time with his room-mates after all. They chatted aimlessly for a bit, wishing spongify would make the hard stone floor soft instead of bouncy so they could sit more comfortably.

"I invited a friend to sit with us today, by the way." Herbie said, preventing John from making a suggestion to bring cushions next time.

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah, his name is Tatum Beaumont. I call him Tate."

"Is he that Ravenclaw bloke?" John asked. "The one who's always asking Professor McGonagall loads of questions in Transfiguration?"

"Well I'm not in your Transfiguration class, but he asks Professor Flitwick loads of questions too so yeah, probably." Herbie laughed in amusement.

John was alerted of Tate's presence when he heard an awkward shuffle, as if someone had just fallen and picked themself off the ground. He greeted Tate and the small talk began. John learned Tate was the middle child of his siblings, with an older brother and younger sister; neither of whom were magical. His father was a half-blood and his mother was a muggle. After sharing this information, Tate redirected the conversation to John's interests in school and they wound up in a conversation about potions. By the end of it, John managed to feel a bit smarter.

The three of them parted ways and John decided Tatum was a fine fellow. He was curious and asked a lot of questions John didn't know the answers to. It got a bit annoying after a while if he was being honest, but he tried not to be rude about it. He would be lying if he said he wasn't relieved when he returned to his room-mates and their hijinks though. There was something comforting about the simple boyish bond they shared.

Much of the months leading to the end of school were filled with the usual antics. John avoided being alone in the corridors without his wand. James and Sirius discovered Remus's penchant for mischief when the two became victim to a series of pranks. They'd initially blamed each other but it didn't take long to realize they were being had. It took them a few weeks to figure out who had been pulling the strings and when they did, the two boys insisted they form an unofficial prankster group. John wasn't around when they decided to make this group so he wasn't a part of it, but he supposed he didn't mind too much. He'd never been keen on the pranking aspect of their friendship anyways.

The weeks leading up to exams were the least hectic of the year thanks the lessened pranks. Many students spent their time studying regularly in the library, but others (like Sirius) elected to cram the night before the exam. John hadn't waited quite so long as Sirius, but he also hadn't started nearly as early as James and Remus. Him and Peter started their studying around a week prior to exams. The exams themselves were stressful and John was unsure whether or not he was remembering any of the correct information. His final exam was Transfiguration and by the end of it all he just wanted to take a long nap on school grounds.

"Mr. Smith, a moment please?" Professor McGonagall's stern voice stopped him before he could do just that. He tensed, slowly turning around to face her.

"Yes ma'am?" John stopped by her desk, where she was grading the exams that had just finished.

"You've improved significantly over the course of this school year." She sent him a warm smile. "Keep working as hard as you have been and I am positive you'll rise to the top of the class. Enjoy your summer, Mr. Smith."

"You too, Professor!"

John grinned before dashing out to join his friends. The rest of the school year before the train ride home passed in the blink of an eye and John found himself sitting in a compartment with Herbie and Tate. He would've sat with his room-mates but the compartment would have been crowded. John found himself already missing Hogwarts as they pulled into King's Cross Station. When he returned to muggle London and his parents called him by the wrong name, he couldn't wait for school to start again.

* * *

 ** _Word Count: 2,588_**

 **Finally! Year one is complete! I honestly don't know if I'm happy with this chapter or not, I'm just kind of disoriented time-wise because I'm in Scotland right now and it's 6 hours later than I'm used to. Next chapter I'll be able to explain what my plans for the more OC-centric Hogwarts fic are so if you're interested in that make sure to stick around for that author's note!**

 **As always, I would love to get any feedback from you! I love all of you and hope to see you next time!**


	9. Chapter 9

"Melanie, it's time to wake up!"

John turned over in bed and grumbled to himself, pulling the covers higher. His mother knocked on his door again but it was early and he was on vacation so he tried to ignore her. He had little success as she opened his door and pulled the covers down herself. She rolled her eyes, walking over to his closet to begin picking out an outfit. Probably a dress.

"For someone who apparently loves school so much, you don't seem very excited about buying your supplies."

John practically leapt out of bed, pushing past his mother to get an outfit ready for the day. She chuckled and left him to his devices. He could smell bacon in the kitchen as he pulled his dungarees on. The shirt he wore under them was his Beatles shirt Allie had gifted him last Christmas and he nearly tied his fingers together as he laced his trainers up. When he left his room he spotted his father serving breakfast and he slid into his seat, pretending he hadn't almost fallen over. He sent a smile at his parents.

"You don't think you should wear something nicer?" His father asked, serving his food.

"It's just _shopping_." John rolled his eyes, shoving a banger into his mouth. "When did the list come in?"

"Please don't speak with your mouth open." His mother reprimanded. "It's unladylike."

"Yeah, yeah." He waved her off, swallowing the sausage. "When did the list come in?"

"This morning, while you were asleep." She handed the letter over.

It was unopened and John noted it was addressed to 'M. Smith' as opposed to his full name or even 'Mr. Smith' and he found himself grateful for that. He tore it open, not concerned with keeping it intact or clean. The grease on his fingers sullied the parchment. On it was his list of school supplies. As he still had his general supplies from the previous year, it only listed the books he needed, as well as mentioning second years were allowed broomsticks. He wondered if his parents would allow him a broomstick. The books were nothing out of the ordinary, though he noted the Defence Against the Dark Arts book seemed much more practical this year than it had the last. He wondered why that was. Their professor last year had been somewhat forgettable. He couldn't remember half of the spells they'd learned with her.

John jumped from his seat as soon as he'd finished eating, but his mother stopped him. After being forced to do the dishes he returned to his room, picking his wand up from its spot under his bed. He hadn't put it there, but it had rolled there of its own accord at some point and he'd never bothered picking it up as he wasn't permitted to use it anyways. It found its way into his chest pocket and he dumped any remaining school materials from his bag onto his bed before slinging it over his shoulder and returning to his parents.

The three of them piled into their car and the long drive to London began. Professor McGonagall had been the one to take John shopping the previous year so he hadn't had the experience of driving there (they'd teleported; apparition, she'd called it). He stared out the window, bored and tapping out random patterns on the window. He breathed on the glass to create fog and doodle little shapes on it. It felt like centuries before they arrived on Charring Cross Road. His parents passed the Leaky Cauldron and John squawked at them, pointing insistently at the pub. They sighed, explaining to him that they had to park before they would be able to go inside. John huffed and crossed his arms, slumping into his seat.

He pranced over to the pub after they finally parked but his parents looked between the muggle bookstore and new record shop with confusion. John tugged them forward and it was only when they were practically touching the building that they recognized it as a pub as opposed to a broken down old shop. It was around lunchtime and they'd been driving for hours, so they stopped to eat before moving on to their shopping. Thankfully, Tom the barkeeper accepted their muggle money, saying he could just exchange it at Gringotts later. Apparently it was common for muggle family members to eat at the Leaky Cauldron before exchanging their money. The Smiths stopped at Gringotts before going to Flourish and Blotts to purchase John's school books.

" _Please_ , Gerard? I promise I won't sneak it into school!" An oddly familiar feminine voice pleaded.

"Your mum said no, and I'm not getting on her bad side." Gerard responded.

John handed his bag off to his parents before dashing off, ignoring his parents alarmed voices. He weaved through the crowd, following the voices as they left the bookstore. On the street, he looked in every direction before spotting a bright red head of hair and running after it. John tapped on her shoulder, out of breath by the time he caught up to her. When she turned around, his suspicion was confirmed. Brown eyes blinked owlishly at him.

"John?"

"Y-you're a-" John wheezed. "You're a witch!"

"You're a wizard!" Allie exclaimed. Both of them stared at each other before letting out excited squeals and hugging each other. Gerard stood to the side, rubbing his ears.

"I can't believe you didn't tell me!"

"I wanted to! You have no idea how much I wanted to!"

"Melanie!" John's mother called out with concern and the moment was broken.

"Ah, don't worry Mrs. Smith, everything is fine." Gerard said, holding his hand out for her to shake. "Your kid just saw Allie is all. They didn't know the other was magic."

John's mom shook Gerard's hand with relief. She looked overwhelmed by the magical surroundings and John was grateful when Gerard suggested she and her husband take a break while he looked after the two children. John's parents hugged him before going back to the Leaky Cauldron to relax. They trusted Gerard Stern. He was Allie's mother's boyfriend from Germany and he was pleasant and responsible. John liked Gerard because he let him and Allie eat more candy than they needed and explore the forest on their own.

Gerard was carrying Allie's books. It looked as if they'd purchased everything but her wand, and a pet if she planned on buying one. John hadn't gotten a pet. His parents wouldn't have let him keep it if he tried. The three of them walked towards Ollivander's, John and Allie chattering excitedly. Both of them were astounded they'd only just found out the other was magical. Allie explained she was a half-blood, as was Gerard. Her mother was a muggle, but her absent father was some sort of magical. John didn't want to ask further questions on that line.

They were entering Ollivander's anyways so there was no need to continue. The bell rang as they entered the musty store, dust clinging to them as if trying to make them a part of the shop. A single lantern tried to light the establishment and gave it a warm glow. Allie blinked several times, looking around for Ollivander while her two companions remembered their own wand purchases. There was a clatter as Ollivander rolled into view on a ladder attached to a shelf stacked high with wands. Allie jumped.

"Why hello there, what's your name?" He leaned forward, his large silver eyes unblinking.

"A-Allie Whitney." She said, eying him warily.

"Yes, I remember your father…" Ollivander murmured thoughtlessly as his gaze was drawn to Gerard. "Did I sell to you?" He asked before Allie could ask anything of her father.

"Ah, no, I'm from Germany. Bought my wand at Gregorovitch Zauberstäbe and went to Durmstrang." Gerard explained briefly. "I've been meaning to buy a second one though. My first one has a core of dragon heartstring but I've looked into wandlore and I believe I'd be better suited to unicorn hair."

"I believe you may be right, young man. Gregorovitch was never the best at finding the wand's perfect match. And his wands themselves…" Ollivander shuddered and John realized with a start that the man was standing directly in front of him. "How has your wand been treating you, Mr. Smith?"

"Er, very well, I think?" He said.

"What kind of wand does he have?" Allie asked, tilting her head in John's direction. She'd gotten over her initial wariness.

"Willow, unicorn hair. Eleven and a half inches. Slightly bendy." Ollivander listed carelessly. "How is your mother?"

"Oh, she's brilliant!" Allie answered, smiling at the measuring tape that had come to life. "We went to the London Zoo a month ago. I got to see Guy the gorilla and a ton of birds in the Snowdon Aviary!" John hoped she wouldn't continue to detail her trip to the zoo. She hadn't shut up about it for ages after her return and he'd be lying if he said he wasn't envious of her.

"Yes, yes. Let me see here…" Ollivander seemed very pleased with her answer and John wondered if he'd somehow gotten an idea of what type of wand she should have. He carefully removed a wand from the shelf. "Try this one. Twelve inches, English oak, dragon heartstring. Bendy." It was ornate.

"Alright then." Allie took the wand, giving it an experimental wave. A shelf quickly caught fire and Ollivander snatched it back.

"Good, good." He slid it back into place without looking as he walked further into the store.

"Sorry!" Allie called after him. He returned momentarily.

"Try this one. Maple. Phoenix feather. Twelve and a half inches. Rigid." Ollivander handed a second wand to her.

"Is your shelf okay?" Allie asked, but before she could wave it around he'd already taken it back. "Is that a no?"

"The shelf is just fine." Ollivander murmured as if not hearing her. He returned, opening another wand box. "This one. Spruce with a core of phoenix feather. Twelve and three-quarter inches. Sturdy." The wand inside was very simple and natural; a stark contrast to the first wand he'd pulled out.

"Oh, I think I like this one. It's warm." Allie smiled, giving it a swish. It produced a shining golden rabbit that hopped around in the air before dissolving.

"A good, strong wand, that one. I must warn you, however, that the combination of spruce wood and phoenix tail feather make your wand prone to performing magic on its own."

"That's alright, I think we'll get along just fine." Allie kissed the wand, twirling it between her fingers.

"How much will that be? Ten galleons?" Gerard asked, pulling out his coin pouch.

"Only seven. You said you were looking into wandlore?"

"Well, I've only dabbled." Gerard's eyes focused on the ground as he handed the proper payment over. "They don't teach many classes on it with someone like you out there."

"A shame, truly…" Ollivander muttered, pocketing the coins. "Stop by anytime, we can talk." The old man smiled before disappearing to the back of his store.

"You know, I like him." Allie stated.

They left the wand shop and compared wands. Gerard's was easily the longest, though he said he would be more comfortable with a shorter one. It looked more like a random stick picked up off the forest floor than a wand, though he assured them it performed its duties well enough. John's was the most ornate, though it was by no means fancy. It was smooth and had a shaped grip with some curving details. After fiddling with her wand, Allie tucked it behind her ear. The action drew John's attention to her recent haircut. It seemed she'd decided to cut most of her hair off since he'd last seen her. When questioned, she claimed it was for the coming school year. She commented on the length of his hair and said she'd ask her mother to give it a trim when they got back home.

Allie's mother was a hairdresser and the one who had initially cut John's hair short. It had been Allie he had first confided in about his gender, and Allie wasn't the best at keeping things to herself. He hadn't thought to ask her to keep it to herself at the time so he supposed that wasn't her fault. She'd gone on to tell her mother and Gerard before he insisted she keep quiet about it. It was nice to have someplace near home he could go to feel comfortable. He was glad he'd fumbled with coming out to her but he wasn't quite ready to tell his parents.

"Have you got a broom?" Allie asked. John followed her gaze to the window of Quality Quidditch Supplies where the Nimbus 1001 was on display.

"I wish." John sighed. "I wanted to try out for quidditch but I haven't been able to practice very much."

"If I- you get a broom now we- you could practice in the forest back home! None of the muggles would see!" Allie said, bouncing up and down. John had a suspicion her motives were not entirely selfless.

"I don't have enough money for a broom." John pointed out. Allie turned to Gerard.

"No." Gerard said, firmly.

"Oh, pretty please, Gerard? It's not for me and I never gave John a proper birthday gift because we were at the zoo." Allie pouted.

"Well…" Gerard said, less firmly.

"Come on, before he changes his mind!" Allie shouted, dragging an amused John into the quidditch store.

"I'm not buying you a Nimbus!" Gerard called after them as he was forced to wait for a horde of shoppers to pass by.

John and Allie perused the crowded shop, making a beeline for the Nimbus 1001 on display. They stared at it in awe before being pushed aside by older shoppers and heading to the other side of the store where the balls were. Allie explained each position in depth, though John had already heard enough of that from James the previous year. She told him she would want to be a chaser or beater if she played. John said he wouldn't mind being a chaser. They wandered the store and when Gerard finally caught up to them they were looking at broom care kits.

It was with much protest that they learned Gerard would only buy a Tinderblast or a Swiftstick. Neither of those brooms were the large name brands of the Nimbus, Cleansweep, or Comet. John hadn't even heard of them before. Allie protested, complaining about them being thirty years old. It took a lot of convincing on Gerard's part, but Allie eventually conceded. She tried to choose the broom herself until he reminded her he was buying it for John. John didn't know much about brooms. He looked between the two and was told the Tinderblast was slower, so he went for the Swiftstick. That one was only twenty years old! John was reassured to learn there were only so many new broom models every couple decades.

The three of them made their way out of Quality Quidditch Supplies. Allie asked if they could stop by Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour before returning to John's parents and Gerard redirected the conversation to point out Eeylops Owl Emporium. John wasn't sure if Gerard wanted to deny them ice cream or if he was simply running out of money. He decided on the latter. Gerard would never deny them ice cream under normal circumstances. The emporium was dark inside, and various owls went about their business. Some ignored them and others stared them down. Allie was drawn to a small, sad looking tawny owl. It was slumped in its cage and she pointed it out to Gerard immediately.

Allie named it Pepper despite its decidedly non-peppery colouration and the purchase was made without any trouble. She seemed to have forgotten about her wish for ice cream as they returned to the Leaky Cauldron. John's parents put a damper on his mood as they misgendered him but he tried to keep his mind on more positive things. Gerard asked the other two adults if they'd arrived by car, to which John's parents nodded. He offered to help them use something called the Floo Network to arrive home faster, after which he would simply summon their car. It took only a moment for the Smiths to agree and after a reassuringly thorough explanation everyone had gotten home.

The sun had begun to set by the time they arrived home and John all but collapsed onto his bed when he reached his room. His bag carrying his school books had been unceremoniously tossed to the ground and his broom was on the bed next to him. He wondered what his Hogwarts friends were up to as he drifted off to sleep. John felt it was going to be a good school year and he had a smile on his face as he entered dreamland.

* * *

 ** _Word Count: 2,846_**

 **Hello! This was a fun chapter for me to write! First year felt sluggish and I didn't enjoy writing it but I have actual plans for second year and on so hopefully I'll enjoy myself more! I haven't edited anything in this though so if it's awkward anywhere I apologize. I won't be editing anything until I finish this and put it on Archive of Our Own. Anyways!**

 **I've been mentioning Allie here and there, yes. She's the character I've kind of been leading up to and is John's childhood friend. She's very fun to write and will be the protagonist of my side-story that will go along with this series. I haven't come up with the title but it will be 'Allie Whitney and the _' because I enjoy using the same title conventions as the series I'm writing for (this is why my How to Train Your Dragon fics are usually titled 'How to _ _ _'). That story will let me focus more on OCs. John will still be a character in it and that's where I'll include any John+OC interactions because his time with the Marauders is more important to this story and I don't want to clutter anything here with OCs now that I've realized how this story will be playing out.**

 **You may continue to send in student OCs if you wish. I've received 2 DADA Professor submissions so far (and 1 is reserved) so I can take 4 more (one will be used for the 2nd part of this series; ask me if you want more information). I've also received an Astrology teacher for part 2. I need teachers for pretty much every subject for part 2 so if you're interested in that (or submitting a student OC for part 2) please let me know and we will talk about that. I don't want to spoil things for my other readers so that's why I'm having this extra step and why I require any submissions to be made by account users. It doesn't take much time to make an account and having one lets you easily follow fics anyways so I recommend you do that if you haven't already (for your own sake!)**

 **I'm in Edinburgh right now and I've actually visited the Elephant House Cafe, where Rowling wrote the first few chapters of Harry Potter! I also wound up on Victoria Street, which is supposedly the inspiration for Diagon Alley. I went into a shop there and bought the 'Hogwarts Library' books (Fantastic Beasts, Beedle, Quidditch) so that's where the broom names came from. I also bought an unofficial spellbook that will be very useful to me (it has every spell in the Harry Potter universe separated into the 7 spell types, lists the incantation if applicable, gives a description, and lets you know if it was found in the video/card games just in case you don't want to use those) so that's also fun!**

 **I've been having a blast and I really hope you guys are enjoying yourselves too! I'd really love it if you could leave a review; I love talking to my readers. As always, I love all of you and I hope to see you next time!**


	10. Chapter 10

The first time John saw the Hogwarts Express he was all by himself with not a familiar face around. The second time John saw the Hogwarts Express he was with his childhood friend and her parental figures. He thought the second time was much nicer. Allie marveled at the crimson locomotive and asked Gerard if he could buy a scale model of it for her. Her mother answered for him and said no. They'd already wasted money on John's broom and couldn't afford any unnecessary purchases. John felt a little bad, but he'd spent the time between Diagon Alley and King's Cross practicing his flying skills. He thought he'd gotten better but it was clear Allie was more of a natural than he was.

Allie's mother asked them to both be on their best behaviour at Hogwarts before leaning down to pull them into a hug. The train whistle sounded so they had no more time to dawdle but Allie made sure to give Gerard a quick hug as well. They hopped onto the train and Allie immediately told John she needed to sit with other first years or she would be socially stunted. John tried not to be offended as Allie assured him she would find him later. She disappeared into a compartment with a pale blonde girl and John went on his way, peering into compartments in search of his friends.

Lily was sitting with Snape. While John would've loved to spend some time with Lily, he wasn't in the mood to deal with Snape's existence. He moved on. The Slytherin girl he'd gotten chocolate from last year was sitting with a blond boy. John didn't really know either of them so he continued on his way. It seemed everywhere he looked he saw either complete strangers or full compartments. Somewhere in the middle of the train he sighed and debated sitting in the hallway despite that being a horrible idea. It was with great relief he spotted a familiar messy head of hair pop out of a nearby compartment.

"James!" John called, grinning. The bespectacled boy turned his way and opened the compartment door.

"John! We were wondering if you'd disappeared!" James walked over to help John with his bags. In the compartment were all of the second year Gryffindor boys.

"Is that a broomstick?" Peter asked from his seat by the door.

"Yeah, a Swiftstick. Family friend bought it for me but he didn't want to spend all the money for a Nimbus so…" John showed them the broom without much glamour.

"At least it's not a Shooting Star. Those only last a few years before losing speed and height." Sirius pointed out.

"Well, _I_ got the new Nimbus 1001. I've been flying it all summer. There's no way the Gryffindor quidditch captain can reject me." James boasted. "What about you lot?"

"I've been practicing too but I don't think I have a chance if you're trying out." John laughed.

"It'd be fun to be a beater but my parents'll never buy me a broom now that I'm a Gryffindor blood-traitor." Sirius scoffed. "I'll be fine just watching from the stands with Remus and Peter."

"What makes you think I'll be in the stands?" Remus asked, lips quirked into a smile. There was a healthy glow to his cheeks.

"Don't even try pretending you'd rather be on a broom than have your nose in a book." John nudged him as he sat between him and James.

"Well…" Remus shrugged, not able to argue with that.

The five of them enjoyed their ride to school and James bought excessive amounts of candy for everyone. It was hard to take any chocolate frogs from Remus. Thankfully, it was only the cards the other boys were after. John felt a bit sick, both physically and mentally, by the end of the train ride. His parents were doctors and they'd drilled the importance of the proper diet into his young, impressionable mind. He would make sure to eat a salad during the feast to quell his guilt. That would probably fix things.

Unlike first year, they left Hogsmeade station and piled into a self-drawn carriage. It was dark outside, but if they peered out the window they could see the lights of the castle twinkling in the distance. Walking into the Great Hall was like returning to a second home. They didn't have the same nerves they'd had a year ago when they'd first caught glimpse of the impressive room. It was interesting to wait with the older students. Some of them seemed bored. Others were taking short naps. It didn't take long for the first years to arrive through the doors. John watched them shuffle in nervously, looking up to the enchanted ceiling with awe. It was endearing. The Sorting Hat began to sing.

" _Welcome young, welcome old,_

 _I am the Sorting Hat!_

 _I don't protect your head from cold,_

 _I'm more important than that._

 _No other hat to me can compare_

 _No cap, nor bonnet, nor cover_

 _To me your thoughts are laid bare_

 _I ascend above all others,_

 _So inside your head I can view_

 _To sort you accordingly_

 _As you start your Hogwarts year anew,_

 _Your house is up to me_

 _Maybe you go in Gryffindor_

 _Where bravery is found_

 _If you're valiant, daring, or audacious,_

 _Then you are Gryffindor bound._

 _Perhaps you belong in Hufflepuff,_

 _With their faithfulness and devotion,_

 _And their untiring forbearance thrives_

 _Hufflepuff would be my notion._

 _Or maybe sagacious Ravenclaw,_

 _With their scholarly brains_

 _They possess the will to acquire all_

 _Ravenclaw individuals have knowledge to attain._

 _And finally crafty Slytherin,_

 _Where you have to watch your back_

 _They search for ways to obtain their goals_

 _But many friends you won't lack_

 _So go ahead, try me on_

 _The famous Sorting Hat,_

 _Lend me your thoughts for a little while,_

 _To set your mind on track!_ "

Everyone applauded and the Hat bowed to each table before sitting still and waiting for its first student. John watched the look of relief wash over the first years and took a moment to point Allie out to his friends. She wasn't hard to spot, with her bright red hair. It seemed she'd made a friend in the girl she'd sat next to on the train. Sirius said she looked like a Malfoy. John only shrugged as McGonagall began reading off names.

"Black, Regulus!" McGonagall called as a smaller Sirius walked up to the Hat.

"You have a brother?" John blinked, whispering to Sirius, who sat beside him.

"Yeah…" Sirius mumbled, resting his chin on his hand. "I don't talk about him much."

"Oh. What's he like?"

"SLYTHERIN!" The hat shouted. Sirius didn't answer him.

Sorting continued and John understood why some of the older students were taking naps. Remus was reading a book on defensive spells as Peter peered over his soldier. Sirius and James seemed to be communicating across the table, solely through odd facial expressions. John put his face on the table. He wondered what classes would be like that year? Would they learn more interesting spells this time around? He turned his head to watch the first years continue their sorting, only sitting up when he thought Allie's name would soon be called.

"Whitney, Allison!" McGonagall called out, seeming slightly tired. John would be too. She'd called out nearly seventy names. Allie said something as she sat on the school, and though John couldn't hear her, he suspected it had something to do with the reason McGonagall rolled her eyes.

"HUFFLEPUFF!" The hat cried after being on her head for only a moment.

Allie pranced off towards Hufflepuff table and John waved at her across the aisle. He wasn't particularly happy about Gryffindors being seated furthest from the door but he couldn't complain about being next to the Hufflepuffs. With the first years sorted, McGonagall took the stool with the Sorting Hat away. Dumbledore stood to give a short speech that John decided he may as well pay attention to.

"I welcome all of you young faces, new and old, to another year at Hogwarts!" He said jovially, arms spread wide and a twinkle in his eyes. "I've always been fond of our school motto, and while I was visiting a good friend of mine in France, I thought; 'Why not translate it?' So, il ne faut pas chatouiller le dragon qui dort!" Dumbledore spoke with an almost comically horrendous accent. "I'm sure Professor Kettleburn would agree with me there." He chuckled, as did Professor Kettleburn. "And I regret to inform you all that Professor Doe has retired as our Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher. She has decided to move to the countryside with her husband and pet augurey."

"Well, she was getting old." John said.

"I'd forgotten her name." Peter admitted.

"Joining our staff this year is Professor Vertstone." Dumbledore continued, and a man who could only be Professor Verstone stood up. "He is taking over the Defence Against the Dark Arts position now that he's finished with his travels. I hope you welcome him with open arms and treat him with the respect all people deserve."

Professor Vertstone was tall, with dark hair and pale skin. He had a pencil-thin mustache, battle scars, and an awkward nose. John suspected it had been broken once before. Despite his imperfections, there was a vaguely inhuman allure to him. The rich purple of his robes was interrupted by a crisp white cravat. He smiled politely at the equally polite applause sent his way. John had a suspicion he would be much more memorable than Professor Doe. He took a short moment to go over the rules before sitting down, and all thought left John's mind as the food appeared on the tables.

The feast was just as he'd remembered it and he didn't think he would ever fail to be impressed by how wonderful all the food at Hogwarts was. He could cook up some tasty meals himself, yes, but that was nothing compared to whoever made the food at Hogwarts. With bellies full and minds hazy, everyone made their way to their dormitories. After learning the password to the tower, they piled into their dorm room, taking a moment to appreciate the sign on their door showing that they were now second year boys. It was nice, being back at Hogwarts. John was sure the others agreed, though they were already asleep and he could not ask them himself.

* * *

 ** _Word Count: 1,749_**

 **In case you're interested in my fic that centers on Allie, I've posted the first chapter! It's called Allie Whitney and the Humorous Hijinks of Hogwarts because I love alliteration and I couldn't think of a more plot-relevant title due to the fact that it doesn't _have_ a plot laid out. You can find it on my profile. That fic is actually the main reason I waited so long to post this one, so sorry about that. Because Allie's fic is now posted, I won't be including any OCs beyond passing mentions of them in this fic. All of your OCs will be in Allie's fic, other than the DADA professors. Please take a look at that one, as it's a much less structured fic and I'll 100% take your requests and ideas in mind when writing it, whether it be for Drama, romance, or whatever you please**

 **ANyways, I also apologize about the shortness of this chapter! I really couldn't think of what to fill it with :') I hope you enjoyed it nonetheless! And if you feel so inclined, I would love to receive a review or two c; You're not obligated to of course, it just makes me feel like people are interested in reading more**

 **I love all of you! Hope to see you next time!**


	11. Chapter 11

John's first proper encounter with Professor Vertstone was in the first Defence Against the Dark Arts class that year. It was only now that they were second years that they began to take five classes a day as opposed to four, and Charms had only woken him up so much after his History of Magic lesson with Professor Binns. It had been a long Monday so far. He was beginning to feel worn out to say the least, but he was curious to see how the new teacher would teach them. Surely anything would be better than last year's Professor Doe. He couldn't remember a thing she'd taught them!

The second year class of Gryffindors and Ravenclaws shuffled into the classroom, not sure what to expect. It was plain and betrayed nothing about their professor. None of them knew what to think. The clock reached 4:06 and Professor Vertstone left his office at the exact moment John was wondering why Hogwarts had such foolish timeframes for its classes. The professor was perfectly punctual, regardless of the silly schedule. He walked into the room without saying anything, moving so smoothly he almost seemed to be gliding. He stopped behind his desk and faced them. A subtle glance at the desks told them all to sit down. When everyone was seated, he cleared his throat.

"My name is Professor Vertstone." He spoke to them in the manner of someone who was already tired of giving this speech. His accent was foreign, though John was unsure where he could be from. "I used to travel the world but got caught up in a conflict in Brazil a few years ago, and have found my way to Hogwarts. I will not take any questions on my personal life. I am your professor and all you should concern yourself with whilst in my class is doing your work properly and paying attention to what I tell you. I advise you to take this class seriously and I will not hesitate to deduct House Points if I see fit."

He finished his speech and nobody spoke. It was as if the whole class had collectively decided to hold their breath. Professor Vertstone scanned the class carefully before pulling his wand out and waving it, causing parchment to fly from his desk to rest, one in front of each student. There was a collective groan at the immediate test they were made to take but before it could get too bad, Professor Vertstone reminded the lot of them that the Defence Against the Dark Arts course had an unreliable record of what was taught each year and he needed to judge how much everyone actually knew. A wave of relief washed over the class as the bell rang to signal the end of the school day. They were informed as they began to pack up that the pop quiz would not even count for a grade.

"Can you believe him?" James scoffed. "A pop quiz on the first day! And he didn't even tell us it wasn't worth a grade!"

"I got stressed for nothing." Peter said glumly.

"Oh, please." Remus rolled his eyes. "It was perfectly reasonable."

"That isn't what you thought when you started sweating bullets halfway through because you couldn't remember if we'd learned about gytrashes or not." John laughed. He was met with a sharp look that made his heart skip a beat.

"And how would do you know that's the question I stopped on?" Remus asked, though John was sure he already knew the answer.

"Er, well…" That didn't mean he wanted to admit it though.

"If it's any consolation, we definitely didn't learn about gytrashes last year." Sirius provided helpfully. "I don't see why you'd care so much even if it _was_ for a grade."

"That's rich, coming from the guy who didn't study for anything until the end-of-year exams." Remus pouted, crossing his arms. John thought it was kind of cute, but then he buried that thought.

They all agreed Professor Vertstone was a teacher to be respected and perhaps a bit intimidated by. Another thing they agreed, however, was that he would surely be an incredible teacher. Remus had already been a fan of Defence Against the Dark Arts before, but now that they had a promising teacher? He practically radiated optimistic energy; something rare for the scarred boy. That didn't stop his friends from disliking the sternness of the professor though. They already thought they had quite enough of that thanks to Professor McGonagall.

At least Professor McGonagall liked quidditch. Two weeks into school, first year flying lessons were beginning, and all of the house teams were having tryouts. James had brought his shiny new Nimbus 1001 to school with him and, upon learning Sirius hadn't a broom to his name, asked his parents to send his 'old' Nimbus 1000. John didn't say it, but he vaguely wished James had given him the broom instead of Sirius. There was nothing wrong with his Swiftstick, of course, but it paled in comparison to the Nimbus. Perhaps one day…

The days leading up to quidditch tryouts, the three of them would take their brooms and use old quaffles to practice throwing and catching. Sirius had mentioned wanting to be a beater, but they were unfortunately not so lucky in getting bludgers for him to practice with. They improvised by using wingardium leviosa to throw decently sized rocks for him to whack with the bat he'd stolen from the Slytherin locker room (something he'd been very proud of at the time). Peter and Remus would watch them from the ground wherever they may have decided to practice that day. There was no doubt that James was the best of the three boys vying to make the team. John wished James wanted to be anything other than a chaser. Maybe then he'd have a chance. That wouldn't stop him from trying though.

On Thursday the 14th, he found it even harder than usual to concentrate in Transfiguration with Ravenclaw. Tate had to set him back on track several times as he got distracted from transforming the animal in front of him into a water goblet. He thought Professor McGonagall was giving him a free pass with his distraction that day. Perhaps she understood that his constant checking of the clock was because her class was the only thing standing between him and quidditch tryouts.

When class finally ended, John, James, and Sirius rushed out of the classroom, their friends tailing behind them. They rushed to the broomshed where their brooms were stored before standing on the quidditch pitch. In their haste, they'd managed to get there before the current members of the team. Peter wheezed, having run after them. James told him he could go sit in the stands with Remus and the squat boy's cheeks turned red as he realized he'd followed them for nothing. He nodded before turning around and heading up to do just that.

Before too long, the captain arrived. One-by-one, every hopeful student wanting to make the team gathered. They split up into groups depending on what they wanted to try out for, causing Sirius to separate from James and John. The goal for the chasers was to score as many times as they could against the team's current keeper, as well as demonstrate their ability to pass the quaffle to other players. By the time it was his turn to try and score, John noticed they'd gained a decent audience. He even saw some people from other houses, recognizing his other friends. It didn't do much to help his nerves.

James went to score before him and not only did he score several times in his allotted time frame of five minutes, he did so with pizzazz. He ran a hand through his already windswept hair after he landed and sent a cocky grin at anyone who looked at him. John didn't think James's wish of 'good luck' would be much help in causing the lump in his throat to disappear. When he went, not only did he not have any pizzazz, but he only managed to score once. Disheartened, John decided to leave early and put his broom away. There was no way they'd let him on the team if he couldn't even score. He went up to the stands to sit next to Remus.

"You weren't _that_ bad…" Peter tried to tell him.

"Ah, what are the chances of them picking two second years to play chaser anyways? James's got a way better chance than I do and there are still older students who are way more qualified." John shrugged him off, pretending it didn't sting that James was better than him at everything.

"You were probably just nervous." Remus told him. "It's not like you usually have a crowd when you're practicing. Besides, when did any of you practice with a keeper?"

"Er…" John didn't grace that question with an answer, as they all knew the answer to be no.

Tryouts went on for an hour longer and John spent his time slouched next to Remus, watching the keeper tryouts more closely than the others. Maybe next year he'd try out to be a keeper? He sighed, his mind still stubbornly set on being a chaser. Maybe one day… James flew up to them in the stands after tryouts, not bothering to go put his broom away.

"I got on the team!" He shouted.

"We knew you would!" Peter squeaked. John only smiled at him, trying not to show his envy.

"Where's Sirius off to?" Remus asked, closing his book. He'd been skimming Quidditch Through the Ages.

"I'm right here." Sirius said, approaching without his broom. "I was just putting the Nimbus in the broomshed."

"Did you get on the team?" James asked eagerly, still on his broom as if to show off his incredible balancing skills. He appeared to be lounging rather comfortably on the wood.

"Ah, they told me to try out again next year." Sirius said, picking at something on his shirt. "I was the only second year trying out. The other blokes had loads more experience."

"I'm sure you'll make it next year." Remus smiled at him. Sirius smiled back.

"Well, I hope you lot have fun watching me at all the quidditch games!" James said loudly. "With my chasing skills, we're going to _crush_ Slytherin. I don't even care if they catch the snitch, I'll score so many points we win anyways!"

John rolled his eyes as the five of them made their way back to the castle, James carrying his broom on his shoulders and exuding an aura of cockiness. John was glad James and Sirius said nothing to him about leaving tryouts early. He would rather not admit to them that he'd given up immediately. They went to the Great Hall as dinner was already well underway. The Gryffindor quidditch captain hadn't wanted to hold tryouts right before dinner but it was the only time available that didn't conflict with first year flying lessons, other team tryouts, or curfew.

James basked in the impressed stares of nearby classmates, his grin only faltering when he quite literally knocked Lily over. The Nimbus clattered to the ground and James scrambled to retrieve it, making sure there was no damage done to it. He looked up at Lily, his brows furrowing as he intended to tell her off. His words died somewhere along the way and he stared at her as she got to her feet, irritably brushing dirt off of herself.

"Do you mind?" She asked, putting her hands on her hips and glaring down at him. James knocked his glasses askew in his rush to stand up and had to adjust them before his cocky grin returned.

"Sorry Evans, I was just telling everyone about how _I'm_ the newest chaser for Gryffindor." James said, resting his broom on his shoulder and running a hand through his hair.

"If that's supposed to impress me, you'll find that I don't care." Lily said, eyes narrowing. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have more important things to do. See you, John." She pushed past the group and left the Great Hall.

"What was that about?" Sirius asked. James shrugged.

"She needs to sort out her priorities. I bet she's gone off to go study."

"James, _you_ like to study." Remus pointed out.

"W-that's different!" He insisted as they continued walking to the Gryffindor table. He sat beside Sirius, John sitting across from him between Remus and Peter.

"I think Jamesie fancies someone." John teased.

"I don't _fancy_ her." James scoffed.

"Then what was all the hair flipping and such about?" Remus asked, cutting some sort of meat. John wondered if it belonged to some magical creature, because he didn't recognize it.

"Nothing." James huffed, stabbing his food.

They teased James for the rest of dinner, laughing as he got more and more flustered. By the end of the meal he was looking so miserable that Remus kicked Sirius under the table to get him to shut his mouth. John reached across the table to pat James's arm and assure him they were only joking around. He then added that if James _did_ fancy Lily, he had pretty good taste. That led to John being accused of fancying Lily; a thought he found uncomfortable. He'd never fancied a single girl in his life! What if he was into blokes? Oh dear, that wouldn't be good. He already had enough trouble with his identity without thinking of such things.

All of them went to their dorms to sleep as the conversation meandered. Classes continued as usual and nothing more of note happened for a week, barring the usual shenanigans and Sirius trying to come up with a way to spread rumors about Snape doing wizard drugs. It was the 22nd when Remus claimed he had to 'visit his mother' again. He returned the Sunday two days later, looking frail and exhausted. The poor boy dragged himself into the dormitory and burrowed under the covers, passing out despite it only being an hour or so past lunch time. The four other second year Gryffindor boys exchanged looks before quietly going down to the common room, not wanting to disturb him.

"He's always tired when he gets back. I'm worried about him." James said quietly, sinking into an armchair. The common room was otherwise empty, thanks to the Hogsmeade trip. That didn't stop them from feeling they had to speak about Remus in a hushed tone.

"Yeah…" Sirius frowned, brows furrowing. "What do you reckon he's really doing? We already know there isn't anything wrong with his mum."

"And he's got scars all over his face." Peter said, nose screwed up as if thinking very hard. "Like claw marks."

"What, you think Remus disappears once a month to go fight wild animals?" John raised a brow. "Oh, and let's not forget the wizard drugs and murder cults. Honestly, none of these theories have a lick of evidence."

"Once a month…" Sirius muttered, thoughtful.

"What is it, Siri?" James asked, prodding his friend.

"Ah, nothing." He shrugged. "Have we ever paid attention to _when_ he's gone?"

"Blimey, I don't think we have." John remarked.

"I can start keeping track of dates!" Peter squeaked, scrambling up the stairs to the dormitories with a surprising amount of quiet.

"You boys better not be conspiring on some ridiculous pranks." Lily's voice made them jump. James ran his fingers through his hair and sent a smile her way.

"Ah, Evans, nice of you to say hi. We were just talking, nothing so fun as that, though I don't see why we shouldn't have some harmless fun now that you mention it." James said, his sentences rambling more than they ought to. Lily scoffed.

"Shove off, Potter." She said, turning her attention to John. "I finished this book Remus wanted to read after me. I don't know where he is, but I trust you can return it to him." Lily handed him the tome, which was on various dark creatures. John didn't question it. Remus's favorite subject was Defence Against the Dark Arts, after all.

"Yeah, will do." John smiled at her. Lily smiled back before leaving, likely to go find her friends. James pouted.

"How come you and Remus get to be so chummy with her?" He asked.

"Oh, I dunno." John shrugged. "Maybe because we're nice to her."

"I'm nice! I'm the nicest bloke around!" James insisted.

"Why's it matter to you, Jamesie?" Sirius asked, teasing. "It's not like you _fancy_ her or anything, right?"

"Well of course not!" James all but shouted, his cheeks turned red.

"What's so wrong with fancying someone anyways? As much as I love teasing James, I don't see anything wrong with him fancying Lily." John said.

"Er…" Sirius failed to come up with a good explanation.

"Besides, maybe I _do_ fancy her." James admitted. "Do you lot not fancy anyone?"

"I never really thought about it." Sirius shrugged. "I'd rather spend time with you lot than pine after someone."

"I've never fancied anyone before." John said, though a pair of tired green eyes passed through his mind.

"Me either." Peter said, and John wondered when he'd gotten back to them.

The four of them felt no need to speak any further and James decided to start on his Charms homework after making a quick trip back to the dorm room to retrieve it. John flicked through the pages of Remus's book, though he did little more than look at the illustrations. He liked the feel of the soft, worn paper. It was old and tattered and it smelled nice. Sirius spent his time distracting James from his homework. Peter was the one who broke the pleasant quiet they had established amongst themselves.

"D'you think Professor Vertstone is a vampire?"

"Oh Merlin's beard, shut _up_ , Peter."

* * *

 ** _Word Count: 2,994_**

 **Fun stuff, fun stuff. I figured people usually start having crushes by age 12, so there's that. I introduced Professor Vertstone but I don't know how much more I'm actually going to do with him lol. No, he's not a vampire, I just like giving Peter the trait of coming up with a bunch of conspiracy theories. We don't really know much about him during his time during Hogwarts so I made that up because it was funny to me.**

 **I can't really think of anything else to write here! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, I definitely had fun writing it! It'd be lovely if you could leave a review but of course, you aren't obligated by any means.**

 **I love all of you, hope to see you next time!**


	12. Chapter 12

John found himself sighing as he worked on a diagram of the moon for Astronomy. It was the 20th of November (time really flew by when you were surrounded by the antics of the second year Gryffindor boys) and Remus hadn't been in class that day. After classes, Sirius had disappeared to the library; something very odd to the rest of them. Remus and James were the ones who enjoyed studying (well, James only when it came to transfiguration). John always approached the action with resigned necessity, Peter would rather avoid it, and Sirius was very vocal in his dislike for the task. Not even bringing up the pranks he could come up with was enough incentive for the boy to study. Despite this, Sirius's grades never suffered. He seemed to do well in classes with little effort, and had a very lax approach to school on the academic side of things.

John realized his thought process had left his Astronomy work when he wrote 'Mare Sirius' instead of 'Mare Serenitatis' and hurriedly scratched that out. It had been last Wednesday, after their Defence lesson with Ravenclaw and Astronomy lesson that night that left Sirius oddly quiet. He said nothing when Remus asked, though John thought he saw Sirius's grey eyes linger on the scars on Remus's face. Even when Remus had gone to owl his parents, Sirius had refused to say anything until he was certain. Now it was Monday and Sirius had bolted from Defence so quickly they barely had time to ask him where he was going.

After an hour of slaving over his chart of the moon, John triumphantly put his (admittedly shoddy) homework away and took a moment to attempt melting into the armchair he'd claimed. Peter looked over at him, looking somewhat envious, while James was tossing Sirius's tennis ball up and down. John wasn't sure when he'd nicked that from him. He sighed, looking around the common room. Third year Davey Gudgeon seemed to be trying to convince fourth year Bertha Jorkins to go out with him. She said she'd do it if he could touch the trunk of the Whomping Willow. John thought that was a horrible plan and hoped it wasn't becoming a trend.

"James! All of you!" Sirius shouted as he scrambled into the common room, nearly tripping over himself as he tried not to drop the heavy tome in his hands. He turned quite a few heads.

"Where's the fire?" James joked, sitting up straight. He stashed the tennis ball with the intent of hiding it from his friend, but Sirius elected to ignore that for the time being.

"No fire, but this is important." He said, then looked around to eye the others in the common room. "Not here though." Sirius darted up to the dormitory, not bothering to wait and see if his friends were following him.

John, James, and Peter exchanged looks, raising their brows at each other. They packed up their belongings before following Sirius, wondering if he was off his rocker. When they reached their dorm room, Sirius was pacing, his eyes trained on the book he was holding. He gestured for the three of them to sit down, though he himself stayed standing for a moment longer. He closed the door, locked it, then looked disappointed. John thought he heard him mumble something about wishing he could barricade it, but there was no furniture in the room save for their beds. Sirius plopped himself into the empty place in the circle and none of them spoke for a while.

"What's going on? You're acting weird, mate." James said.

"Er…" Sirius hesitated, glancing down at the book in his hands. It didn't have a title visible and black leather of the cover had a pale circle on it. Peter eyed it suspiciously.

"Did that come from the Restricted Section?" The mousy boy asked, his voice trembling.

"What were you doing in the library of all places anyways?" John asked, wanting to slouch but feeling the situation demanded proper respect. Not that any of them knew what was going on.

"It's about Remus." That got everyone's attention. "I think I know what's wrong with him." He didn't elaborate.

"Well go on then!" James exclaimed.

"What were we studying in Astronomy?" Sirius asked them.

"The moon, duh." James rolled his eyes. "Get on with it mate, we're not here to help you with your charts."

Peter gasped suddenly, his beady little eyes on the book Sirius had in his lap. He seemed to have realized something and his breathing quickened. John could see his mind working a mile a minute. James only spared him a glance, still staring at Sirius with confusion. John hadn't noticed before, but Sirius seemed nervous. His eyebrows were drawn and his voice had been thick, like there was a lump in his throat he just couldn't get to go away. Even his grip on the book was tighter than it needed to be. James didn't seem to be making the connection Peter had. Him and John continued to be confused by their two friends' clear feelings of fear.

"Lupin is a w-werewolf." Peter stuttered, voice muffled as he covered the lower part of his face with his hands.

"Werewolves are real?" John's cheeks tinged pink at the incredulous stares he received. "I'm a muggleborn!" He squawked before they could say anything.

"I can't believe we've been sleeping in the same room as a… a werewolf." James's voice shook and he rubbed his arm, chancing a glance at Remus's shabby trunk at the end of his bed.

"He could _eat_ us!" Peter quivered.

"Remus wouldn't eat us." Sirius said, words harsh as he glared at Peter.

"But everyone knows-" James started.

"Nobody knows anything!" Sirius cut him off. "Have you ever met a werewolf?"

"Er… not exactly…" James mumbled.

"Sorry, I don't understand what the big deal is. Are werewolves different for wizards than the stories we muggles have?" John asked, vaguely realizing it was perhaps a bit wrong to call himself a muggle, but it had felt right in the moment.

"I don't know what the muggle stories are." James told him, and John remembered he was the only one in the room who had grown up with muggle culture. Peter was a half-blood, sure, but both of his parents were magical and hadn't exactly immersed him in muggle culture.

"They're just like, regular people who turn into wolves on the full moon." John said, not in the mood to go into any details.

"Oh. Well, I guess they're pretty much the same then." James responded.

"Do you think we should tell Professor McGonagall?" Peter asked, his eyes darting around the room. He was fidgeting uncomfortably.

"Don't you think she'd already know about it? I'm sure it's safe; there's no way the Headmaster would let anyone dangerous into the school." John said. James and Peter shifted, avoiding eye contact.

"Remus is our friend." Sirius said bluntly. "You think I don't know the things people say about werewolves? You think I haven't heard every insult that could be thrown at them from my dear old mum's filthy mouth?"

"Yeah, but Sirius, my mum… She always says rumors come from someplace real." James said, hesitant. Sirius practically growled.

"What if I told you _I_ was a werewolf right now?" Sirius asked, hypothetically.

Silence hung in the air between the four of them. James looked guilty. Peter seemed to have forgotten how to speak. John wasn't sure _what_ to think. Remus was still the same boy they all knew, wasn't he? The soft spoken scholar with a penchant for subtle mischief hadn't changed at all, they just knew a little more about him. John wondered what sorts of things Sirius's mother had spouted about werewolves.

"H-how can you be so sure?" Peter asked, his tiny voice barely even managing to leave his mouth. He was pointedly looking at the book in Sirius's hands instead of his face.

"Because everything my mum says is a load of hippogriff dung, and if I know anything about Remus, it's that he's one of us." Sirius said firmly, jabbing his thumb at his heart. He pushed the book out into the middle of their circle.

"You never told us if the book was from the restricted section or not." John pointed out. He was probably taking the news of Remus apparently being a werewolf the lightest of the group.

"Er… I don't actually know, I swiped it from a Slytherin. Boy, I don't wanna see the look on his face when he realizes it's missing." Sirius shuddered.

"Huh. So all that time in the library was useless?" John asked, opening the book as the other two boys were still apprehensive.

"It wasn't useless!" Sirius's cheeks flushed. "This one just happened to be the best book on the subject. All the other ones were biased."

"I'm sorry." James said, breaking his silence as he tried to read the text upside down. "You're right, Sirius. Remus is our friend." He adopted a look of steely resolve. "Remus is one of us, and damned if I'll let something like this convince me otherwise."

"B-but…" Peter squeaked and said no more. He simply nodded, though John thought he didn't look so committed.

"Nothing has to change around here. Remus is still Remus, werewolf or not." Sirius said.

The four of them stayed in the circle for a while longer before they all began to tire. They retreated to bed. The next day, they found it difficult to concentrate in class knowing their friend was in the hospital wing. The book Sirius had nicked from the Slytherin had contained helpful information, and John wanted to go through it more thoroughly later. For now, they had to get through classes. At lunch, they whispered amongst themselves, wondering what they could do to make things easier for Remus.

By the time they showed up for double Charms with Hufflepuff, they had a few ideas. They all made an effort to make an extra set of notes for Remus, and they asked around for any chocolate the older students may have bought from Hogsmeade. James suggested they find the kitchens sometime. Surely they would have chocolate down there? Sirius nearly drooled at the thought of having access to the Hogwarts kitchens. John had to remind him he couldn't cook, and it probably wouldn't be of much use to him. When Remus returned, they would make a point to try and help him if any opportunity arose. It was only a vague sort of plan, but it was better than nothing.

They didn't wait for Remus to return to them, instead deciding to stop by the Hospital Wing on Wednesday during lunch. They would have cut class, had John not insisted on going to Herbology and Transfiguration. Perhaps he wouldn't have cared if they'd had History of Magic, but that wasn't important. Lunch was the perfect opportunity regardless, as they had a small window of time when the mediwitch would be in the Great Hall to eat.

John found it even harder to focus in Transfiguration than usual. His eyes kept darting to the door, knowing this class was the only thing standing between him and the Hospital Wing. His will to turn a parrot into a… what were they doing again? He glanced over at James, spotting the other boy with a vase on his desk. McGonagall had already given him 10 points to Gryffindor for his quick grasp on the spellwork. John bit his cheek and kept his rude thoughts to himself.

"Mr. Smith, if you'd stay behind a moment?" Professor McGonagall spoke above the sound of the class packing up.

"Er, alright." John wondered if he were in trouble.

He gathered his belongings and walked to her desk, sending a helpless shrug to his friends. Most classmates either ignored him or sent him pitying glances. John was pretty sure he hadn't done anything to break any rules… Unless he was in trouble for the book on werewolves? But he hadn't even taken that! Sirius had! His foot tapped incessantly, hoping this wouldn't take long. Anxiety had made it hard to breathe by the time she finally spoke to him.

"Is everything alright?" Professor McGonagall asked. "You were making good progress in all your classes until recently."

"Alright?" John blinked, his foot stilling as his anxieties were pushed from the forefront of his thoughts. "Er…"

He hadn't realized his focus had dropped in anything but Transfiguration, which had always been difficult for him anyways. Had it really been _all_ his classes? How did she even know how he was doing in his other classes? Wait. She was his Head of House, of course she knew. Now that she'd pointed it out, however, he _had_ been distracted. His potions with Herbie had been of below average quality, the plant he was caring for in Herbology had wilted slightly, his charmwork was shoddy, and he hadn't even taken notes in Defence. Not that he'd ever really been good at any subject aside from Herbology (and perhaps Potions). His Head of House watched him, her hands folded on her desk but relaxed. She waited.

"I'm just… worried about Remus." John mumbled, looking down. Surely McGonagall would know about Remus's condition? Was there any need to hide it from her? Her face softened.

"Remus has an… unfortunate condition, but he will be alright." The professor said delicately.

"Is there anything we can do to help him?" John asked, stepping closer, a crease in his brow. "I don't know what it's like to transform like that, but he looked horrible when I saw him in the Hospital Wing last year." McGonagall looked taken aback at the mention of the transformation, and John suspected she thought he didn't know the extent of Remus's condition.

"All you can do for him is be his friend." McGonagall said, placing a hand on his shoulder. "He is being taken care of in the best way we can provide."

"Sorry for getting distracted in class." John said.

"It's alright, so long as you pick your grades up. I can't have one of my students falling behind now, can I?" She smiled. "My door is always open if you need to talk." She paused, letting the offer really sink in.

"Do you have any chocolate?" John asked before she could continue.

"Er, it just so happens I do, but do not expect me to have some on my person at all times." She told him, opening a drawer in her desk. "The headmaster stopped by between classes and handed it to me, though I have no idea why."

"Thank you, Professor!" John chirped, taking the chocolate bar. Two of the eight squares had been eaten, but he didn't think it would be a problem.

"Well, off you trot. You shouldn't miss lunch."

John nodded and rushed out of the class, not telling her he wasn't exactly headed for the Great Hall. He thought she'd seemed rather motherly, though he had to wonder why she'd taken any interest in him. None of the other classmates had been singled out by her, save for James. It made sense with James, though. He was gifted in her subject; a fact that perhaps made John's performance in the class even worse as he was constantly comparing his own poor skills to his friend. So why in the world had she wanted to speak with him specifically? She'd done it last year after the exams as well.

Shaking that thought away, he hurried off to the Hospital Wing. His friends had left without him and he wasn't sure he would be able to reach it before Madam Pomfrey returned from her brief lunch break. He glanced down from the moving staircase he was waiting on and felt his heart rate spike as he spotted Avery and Mulciber walking up the stairs that would lead to the exact landing he was on. It almost felt like the castle sensed his panic, as the stairs moved faster than he'd ever seen them move before. He ran the rest of the way to the Hospital Wing and nearly collapsed as he went through the double doors, lungs like shrivelled figs. Relief washed over him, though his eyes burned and he felt like a coward.

He'd run away. What sort of Gryffindor was he? What kind of _boy_ was he? John hurriedly wiped the wetness from his eyes as he regained his breath. Boys don't cry, he told himself, repeating it until he was sure he'd stopped. And for that matter, men don't run from fights. He wondered if Professor Vertstone could help him with defencive magic. Or Professor Flitwick? He'd heard the little old wizard was a dueling champion. Sufficiently distracted from his previous line of thought, John tried to listen for any sound of Madam Pomfrey.

"Hello?" John called out, realizing the room was quiet.

"Oh, it's just John." James said from behind a curtain hiding the same bed Remus had been in last time. John went over, noticing they had drawn a chair for him. He sat in it and took a moment to focus on breathing.

"What did McGonagall want?" Sirius asked, his voice quiet as Remus was still sleeping. His chair was closer to the bed than James and Peter's.

"Oh, just something about grades. I haven't been paying a lot of attention lately apparently." He tried to shrug it off like it didn't bother him. He scooted his chair closer to Remus and sighed. "At least he looks better than last time." He commented, pulling the chocolate bar he'd received from McGonagall out of his pocket.

"This is _better?_ " James exclaimed, eyebrows knitted together with concern.

"Yes, much. I wonder why?" John hummed, ignoring Peter's shaky mumbling and instead focusing on Remus shifting slightly in bed.

"Remus?" Sirius leaned over the boy.

"Si… rius?" Remus asked after prying his eyes open. Sirius smiled at him.

"You're alive!"

"Mm…"

"Why wouldn't he be alive?" John asked, raising his eyebrow.

"He didn't look very alive." Peter pointed out.

Remus squeezed his eyes shut, his nose scrunching up a bit. It was sort of cute. John buried that thought and watched Remus look around at all of them. He didn't look very panicked, and the movement of his head was sluggish. His eyes weren't entirely focused, and John determined that he was definitely sedated. He wondered how magical sedation worked? Before anyone could say anything, he held the chocolate bar up. Remus licked his chapped lips.

"Did the smell of chocolate wake you up?" John asked, amused.

"... Maybe?" Remus posed it as a question.

"Here, give me some of that." Sirius said, taking the bar from John's hands. He started, glaring at the other boy. "Open your mouth, Remus."

Remus did so without questioning, and John heavily suspected it was because of whatever sedative charms had been placed on him. Nobody in their right mind would willingly allow Sirius to feed them anything, even if the thing in question looked to be delicious chocolate. Sometimes laxatives looked like delicious chocolate, after all. What a horrible prank the boys had pulled on Severus last month. John didn't want to remember that incident any further, as he had felt secondhand embarrassment just from watching it unfold.

"I hope we get to see you back in the dorm soon." John said.

"We've been taking notes for you!" Peter squeaked.

"And we're going to find the kitchens so you can sneak chocolate anytime you want!" James said, a grin on his face.

"What…?"

"Don't worry about it." John patted Remus's arm, taking care not to touch anything that looked bandaged.

"We'll tell you again later." Sirius added.

He put the chocolate bar on the mattress, within easy reach of Remus. John somewhat wished he'd been the one to feed Remus the chocolate, though he squashed that thought and wondered instead why Sirius had bothered to do it in the first place. Remus looked content though, so he decided not to ask. Peter's stomach growled and he blushed at the looks sent his way, mumbling as he pointed out none of them had eaten lunch. They decided to head out before they were caught by Madam Pomfrey. Lunch was still being served, so they'd be able to eat before double Potions with Slytherin.

"Tell us if you need anything." James said as he stood from his seat.

"Yeah, and we'll hex the next bloke who rags on you for anything." Sirius jabbed his wand in a threatening manner.

"We don't care what you are, Remus. You'll always be our friend." John said, his gaze soft.

"Unless he's doing wizard drugs." Peter commented.

The four of them left Remus's bedside, and though the young werewolf was still sedated, he found himself feeling a bit relieved and a bit confused. It was a normal feeling, for anyone spending time with the second year Gryffindor boys. He closed his eyes, not fully registering that all of his friends had seen him in that sorry state. Madam Pomfrey returned soon after, but he paid her no mind, only hoping she didn't notice the chocolate bar he was now hiding beneath his sheets.

* * *

 _ **Word Count: 3,551**_

 **Fanfiction is saying my word count is 3,676 but Google Docs says otherwise and I trust Docs more.**

 **Anyways, sorry about the long wait. I've been going through some stuff. This chapter was supposed to include more than just like, two or three scenes but oh well, that's just how it worked out. I have no guarantees on what's going to happen next by the way, but I have been thinking through the plot more, and I've solidified the ending of this first part more. I will say it ends fourth year, so unfortunately you guys will not be seeing the Marauders become Animagi, but there are plenty of other fics that do that and I'll write my take on the Animagus process in Part Two of the story**

 **I don't know when I'll be writing more of Allie's fic, so I apologize for that. I haven't been feeling very inclined to write fanfiction with college and other things going on at the moment**

 **I hope you enjoyed this chapter regardless! I would love to read any reviews, and I'll see you next time. I love all of you, bye!**


	13. Chapter 13

"Er, John?"

John looked up from a book on supposedly simple healing charms he was reading in the library. He couldn't understand half of the words and frankly, it was giving him a headache. The spellwork was well outside of his current capabilities, and he more than welcomed Remus's interruption. He closed the book and smiled at the boy as he sat next to him. It was the weekend after everyone visited him in the Hospital Wing. Remus cleared his throat, avoiding eye contact.

"I, er, I'm not sure if I was dreaming or if this actually happened when I was in the Hospital Wing this past week…" He trailed off, looking at John from the corner of his eye.

"It was real." John responded, gently patting his shoulder. "Did Sirius tell you we were going to try and find the kitchens tonight?" He changed the subject.

"Er, no, I haven't seen him today. Lily was the one who told me you were in here. What are you doing?" Remus moved his chair to lessen the gap between them and allow him to look at the book John had on the table.

"Ah, I was just trying to look at some easy healing spells." He sighed. "I don't know why I even bother, though. It's a load of nonsense to me."

"Do you want to be a healer?" Remus asked, skimming the text himself. It really didn't seem all that difficult, but then, John wasn't exactly the best at magic- especially when it came to some of the wizarding terms that didn't generally get explained to muggleborns.

"Yeah, I always have. My mum and dad are doctors, so I figure being a healer is just being a wizard doctor." John told him. "Plus, well…" His eyes drifted to Remus's scars. "I just thought maybe I could help."

"Oh, John…" Remus smiled at him. "Thank you, but you really don't have to. If the people at St. Mungo's can't do anything…" John sighed.

"Oh." Neither of them spoke for a moment.

"Are you doing alright in your classes?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." He lied, a little embarrassed.

Their conversations usually weren't so awkward. Perhaps they'd just struck on the perfect combination of mildly uncomfortable subject matter. They went quiet, not wanting to drag it on any longer. John stood after a moment, giving up on the healing book. He put it away before wandering towards the fictional books, returning to Remus with the first interesting title on the shelf. The summary on the back of the book suggested it to be a coming of age story. John sat down at got reading, but he only half-paid any attention to it. Remus was doing homework.

John left Remus when he spotted his Ravenclaw friend Tate leaving the library. He hadn't particularly wanted to hang out with Tate in that moment, as the other boy had a tendency to ask a great many questions, but he'd been wanting to leave the library and didn't fancy running into Avery or Mulciber alone. The two of them wandered about the castle for a while before deciding it was time to have dinner and making their way towards the Great Hall.

In the Great Hall, James was trying to levitate Slytherin food from across the room. Peter sent nervous looks toward the High Table, and Sirius was snickering at Jame's failure. John sat across from him, amused. When asked where Remus was, he could only say he'd last seen him in the library. James and Sirius got up at the same moment, intending to go fetch him. While they were both surprised the other had stood up, there wasn't much protest to both of them going, so John was left with Peter.

John didn't spend much one-on-one time with Peter. It was sort of awkward. They had no idea what to talk about. He looked over at Lily, but she was busy laughing with her friends. It felt like a long time the other two boys were gone, but it was probably only a few minutes. Remus was forced to sit between James and Sirius and food was piled onto his plate. Despite Remus's visible embarrassment, the only thing he protested was the meat; it was too well done. John wondered if Remus had a preference for raw meat thanks to his werewolf status. He supposed it would be rude to ask. Perhaps Madam Pomfrey could provide an answer?

The group of five didn't stand from the Gryffindor table until Remus had finished eating. The boy was worryingly thin, and they had all begun to feel more than a little protective of him. It was probably going to get very annoying, very quickly. As they walked to the door, they brainstormed ideas on where the kitchens could possibly be. They weren't being particularly quiet about the matter though.

"I can show you to the kitchens." Allie said as she approached, and all of them turned to look at her. "All the Hufflepuffs know where they are." She added, smiling and putting her hands in her pockets.

"And you never bothered to tell me this?" John asked, offended.

"You never asked." Allie responded, also offended. Well, not really considering the laughter.

Allie led them down to the kitchens, explaining they had to tickle a pear in a painting of a fruit bowl. The boys let their mouths fall open at the sight of shrivelled little elves with huge eyes bustled about, preparing all sorts of food and tidying up. One of them approached the group and asked if they needed anything. John noted that its voice was very squeaky, and James easily asked for chocolate. The elf scurried away and returned with several bars of chocolate, as well as mugs of hot chocolate. They found themselves sitting at a small table, Allie leaving them to discover the joys of the kitchen as she went off to teach herself sign language, or something of that sort.

"What are they?" John asked, watching the wrinkled creatures bustle about as he ate his marshmallows separately from his drink. James watched him do so with distaste.

"They're called house-elves." Sirius provided. "They're a race of servants, basically."

"Is that humane?" John asked, frowning.

"Well yeah, they like being servants." James rolled his eyes, as if John should've known that.

"Oh…"

"Only rich wizards have house-elves." Peter mumbled, eying them with some form of envy.

"Yeah, but they get treated horribly." Sirius said. "At least, Kreacher does. Mind you, he's a nasty bit of work regardless. He deserves it."

"I'm sure the house-elves here are treated well." Remus said, sipping his hot chocolate. He'd already eaten his chocolate bar. "They looked well-kept, at least."

"We don't treat Mipsy like rubbish." James said.

"How strange." John said, commenting more on the concept of house-elves as a whole than the specific treatment of them.

The five of them enjoyed themselves in the kitchens before heading up to Gryffindor tower. James and Sirius lamented the fact that they'd just been _shown_ to the kitchens, and decided to go out exploring that night anyways. When John asked them why they were exploring, they said they wanted to make a map of the school. They apparently had magical ideas for it, but they said they'd explain later as they disappeared under James's invisibility cloak. He'd gotten it from his father over the summer vacation. It was somewhat difficult to fit more than two people under it without their feet showing, but the three remaining boys didn't want to get caught out of bed after curfew, so they generally didn't mind.

John, not wanting to touch the homework he had to do as it made no sense to him, dug through his trunk to pull out his Etch A Sketch. He wasn't good at drawing or creating pleasing images on the toy, but it was much better than doing nothing (or homework). Remus and Peter spoke amongst each other, but John paid them no mind. He was busy trying to draw a cauldron. It wasn't turning out very well but he didn't care.

"Why don't you ask John for help? He's better than I am." Remus's voice made it through to John's ears and he looked up to watch Peter shuffle over.

"Er, could you help me with the Herbology homework?" Peter asked.

John blinked at him, startled by the request. Nobody had ever asked him for help in schoolwork before. He glanced at Remus, but the other boy had already returned to his own work and wasn't looking at the two of them. John agreed to help Peter, and when James and Sirius returned from their exploration, the two of them were still on the floor, talking about plants. They'd finished the Herbology homework long ago, but John got distracted talking about extra information he knew that related herbology to potion-brewing and healing. His eyes were bright and there was a smile on his face. He had a lightness in his chest and he didn't even realize until later that it was the happiest he'd been in a while.

Peter had seemed happier as well, when they'd finished. John had avoided asking for help in any of his classes, embarrassed by his poor understanding of just about every magical concept, but that little tutoring session was making him rethink his habits. He approached James, having accepted help with Transfiguration last year when he'd offered. In class, the spells came just the slightest bit easier, and Professor McGonagall smiled at him. John asked Lily for help with Charms, and Flitwick's excited clapping when he successfully cast the feather-light charm filled him with pride. It was the beginning of December before John realized something.

"Remus, you're good at Herbology." John said as they sat together in the library, revising each others essays for the subject.

"I'm no better at Herbology than I am at most other subjects." He deflected.

"No but- you always said yes to Peter asking for any help." John put his quill down. "You never turned him away until that weekend we found the kitchens." Remus avoided his eyes.

"Er, I just wanted to focus on my own work…" He tried.

"Why'd you tell him to ask me?" They made eye contact.

"... I thought it'd be good for you." Remus whispered. "You always get upset after quidditch games, and I thought maybe that's what was affecting your grades, and I know I always feel better about myself when I tutor someone so I just thought…" He looked away, realizing he was rambling and scratching the back of his neck.

"I get upset after quidditch games?"

They stared at each other, and John wondered if he'd honestly been that oblivious to his own mental state. It seemed so obvious now. His grades had dropped in the week leading up to them learning Remus was a werewolf. That had been directly after the Hufflepuff-Ravenclaw game. He'd even avoided thinking about quidditch as a whole thanks to the nasty feelings in his gut every time he watched any of the Chasers score points. For some reason, there were only six quidditch matches a year, so he was generally dragged to each one despite only three of them being Gryffindor matches. It was slightly less worse to see people who weren't James score, so John was glad the next Gryffindor match wasn't until March.

"God, I'm stupid." John slapped his palm against his forehead. Remus laughed, and it made his heart flutter as he joined in his laughter.

"No stupider than everyone else can be sometimes."

"Well… thanks." John picked his quill back up. "It helped. I've got to stop getting stupid with quidditch."

"Now that you know, I'm sure everything will be fine." Remus reassured him.

Lily spotted them in the library and decided to sit with them, pulling out her own Herbology essay after they told her what they were doing. It had been a somewhat sudden moment, as the three of them hadn't spent a significant amount of time together before. The boys didn't mind, however, and Lily helped them both immensely with their Charms and Potions work after they finished Herbology. The time seemed to fly by as they joked and giggled as quietly as they could, getting shushed by Madam Pince several times as they worked.

It became an unofficial routine of theirs when she showed up and joined them their next study session the following Wednesday as well, and the Wednesday after that. Their study group was small but effective, and loads of fun. Despite it being a study group, the three of them were still children who giggled at the most ridiculous things. Once, on the subject of pranks, Remus suggested cutting all of James's hair off. Lily had laughed so hard her hiccups had required attention from Madam Pomfrey.

Spending time in the library with Lily and Remus was a nice change of pace from the antics Sirius and James liked to rope them into. John found himself very busy, and the study sessions were also the only thing making sure he stayed up-to-date on his classwork. He found himself friends with more people than he realized and when he wasn't with his fellow Gryffindors, he was off with Allie and her Hufflepuff friends, or Herbie and Tate. Without Remus and Lily, he probably wouldn't have passed most of his classes. It was all incredibly fun though, and he loved every moment of it.

As the winter holidays approached, John couldn't help but feel excited. All of his Gryffindor friends would be staying at Hogwarts over the break, even Lily! He wasn't sure about his friends in other houses, but he didn't think time could pass fast enough. This year, he was going to be ready for Christmas and his friends would _all_ get presents from him.

* * *

 ** _Word Count: 2,314_**

 **This chapter is somehow extremely short and yet a lot of time passes. I know I'm speeding through things kind of fast, but there really isn't a huge mystery every single year the Marauders at Hogwarts so covering everything that happens would just be a bunch of pointless detail about their school life that I don't want to get into, and isn't relevant to my overarching plot. I'm not trying to have the same pacing as the original Harry Potter books, because each Part of this series with John Smith covers the span of _at the very least_ 4 years.**

 **I originally didn't have anything else planned for second year, but I've just thought up a plot involving Professor Vertstone that I believe will be very important to John's character growth, so there's a few chapters yet. Maybe three? Next chapter will obviously be the winter holidays, then some other stuff, then maybe the train ride back? It's not solidified but I have plans I swear**

 **Now, I actually do have enough DADA professors for the rest of this Part of the series, which I believe is wonderful. I don't have many ideas for Allie's story though, so if you're interested in reading about her stuff, by all means, go ahead and check that out and leave me some suggestions**

 **Anyways, I love all of you and it would mean so much to me if you could leave a review and give me some feedback. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I'll see you next time!**


	14. Chapter 14

John had been planning on getting all of his friends presents, he really had been. That was before he remembered he was a twelve year-old child with no source of income, and there was no way he was going to ask his parents for anything. He wasn't always the smartest, and had failed to think of this until the break had already started and there were only two days before Christmas. As such, he did what any reasonable person would do and went to the kitchens to stress-eat. It wasn't curfew yet, so he was sure he would be fine.

"How is Fopsy serving Young Mister John today?" A house elf asked as soon as John entered the kitchens. John squatted down to be closer to eye level with her.

"Can I have some pie?" John asked.

"What kinds of pie is Young Mister John wanting from Fopsy tonight?"

"Any kind will do." He smiled at her. "Surprise me!"

He sat on the ground with his back to the wall, watching the bustle of the kitchens. Dinner was technically still going, but John always thought desserts tasted better when they were made just for him. Perhaps it was a selfish thought, but that didn't stop him from thinking it. He hummed to himself, wondering if he'd ever be properly prepared for Christmas. All he had were Christmas carols he'd heard on the radio at home. He hadn't even realized some of them were Christmas carols, he'd simply found them catchy. John wished his parents celebrated Christmas.

Fopsy scuttled over to him to tell him his pie was finished. It was apple. He thanked her and made sure to inform her it was delicious after he took the first bite. Fopsy was delighted, insisting he tell her if he needed anything else. He asked for warm milk. She provided it and left him to his dessert as she rushed off to assist her fellow house-elves in cleaning up. John ate his pie before sprawling out on the ground near the fireplace. What was he going to do for presents?

"Is there anything Fopsy can assist the Young Mister John with?" The elf approached, worry lacing her voice.

"I just can't think of anything to do for my friends." John pouted, dragging himself to a sitting position. "It's going to be Christmas, you know."

"Yes, Fopsy knows." She nodded. "All the house elves is getting up early to cook the Feast!"

"Isn't that at night though?"

"If we didn't wakes up so early, we wouldn't be finishing in time, Young Mister John!" Fopsy insisted, then covered her mouth as if afraid she'd said something wrong.

"Oh, wow. I didn't realize you worked so hard for the feasts." John commented. "Y'know, that's really impressive." Fopsy beamed.

"Is there anything Fopsy can do to help Young Mister John with his presents?" She asked. John thought for a moment.

"I don't know. I don't have any money, so I can't buy them anything, and even if I could it wouldn't get here in time." John mumbled, and Fopsy shuffled her feet, not liking the thought of being unable to help. "What do the others like…" John mumbled to himself. "Quidditch? Muggle stuff?" He paused. "Chocolate."

"Fopsy can gets chocolate for the Young Mister John!" She chirped, ready to rush off and do so. John sort of wished she would simplify his title, but that was how she referred to the rest of his dorm-mates as well so he supposed it couldn't be helped.

"No, no, chocolate is too simple." John frowned. "How many dessert recipes do you know?"

"Oh, Fopsy knows many many recipes!" She was practically vibrating with the amount of energy she wanted to put toward assisting him. "And if Fopsy doesn't knows a recipe, she can go learns it right away!"

"I think I've got an idea then."

John and Fopsy spoke for another half-hour before John felt satisfied. As he left the kitchens, he tried to think of something he could do to repay the house elf. He didn't have money, though he was sure she wouldn't accept any anyways. Clothes were an automatic no, as his friends had explained to him that giving a house elf (one you didn't own, at least) clothes would be implying it should abandon its master and that was a huge faux pas. There was no point in trying to cook anything for her, as he was sure she was a much better cook than him already. John frowned, stumped. He'd figured out how to solve one gift-giving dilemma, only to run into another one.

He realized he wasn't entirely sure where he was. Had he taken a wrong turn? The dungeons weren't a part of the castle he frequented. All the stone walls looked the same, thanks to the lack of colourful portraits. He knew he needed to go up, but he was having a bit of trouble finding the stairs. John grumbled to himself, turning around and trying to retrace his steps. The idea of a map seemed lovely right about then, but John was also terrible at reading maps so he doubted it would've really been all that much help. Unless it also showed you where you were? Hmm.

Hearing voices ahead, John quickened his pace. Hogwarts was a large school, especially for one with less than 300 students. It was easy to lose oneself in its depths, so hearing people speaking was generally a good sign. Perhaps he'd found some friendly Hufflepuffs? That nice Slytherin girl who'd given him a chocolate frog to give to Remus last year? He wondered if she was still at school or if she'd graduated. John turned a corner, thinking he might vaguely recognize the area from going to Potions lessons, before crashing into two bodies. He wound up on the floor, rubbing his bum.

"Well, if it isn't the girly little mudblood."

John froze, tensing at the sound of Mulciber's voice. His usual fear was accompanied by the anxiety that Mulciber had somehow found out about the state of his body. Surely Mulciber hadn't found out about that? Not even his dorm-mates knew! John looked up at him with wide eyes and his dread worsened as he watched Avery laugh at him.

His heart jumped into his throat as he scrambled away from them, glad he wasn't wearing his school robes as he surely would have tripped on them otherwise. He was also thankful he'd taken the time to slip his wand into his pocket before he went to the kitchens, though he struggled to get it out. Avery and Mulciber only laughed at him more, mocking and generally jeering at him. John's cheeks flushed and he tried to think of any useful spells, but his mind was inconveniently blank. He wanted to punch them again, but he'd already done that once and they'd probably be expecting it.

"How cute, he thinks he can do something to us." Avery pulled his wand out with a lazy sort of ease that made John's blood boil. " _Furnunculus!_ "

Suddenly, his blood wasn't the only thing boiling. John felt boils sprout across his skin and he had the incredible urge to scratch at them but he refrained, presuming it would only make matters worse. Mulciber flicked his wand, casting the leg-locker curse (" _Locomotor Mortis!_ ") and causing John to wobble, losing his balance. He tried to cast the jelly-legs jinx to no effect. The only good thing about the painful boils on his face was that they hid his embarrassed blush. His spell hadn't even worked. How pathetic was he?

"Thanks for the suggestion!" Mulciber cackled.

" _Locomotor Wib-_ "

" _Expelliarmus!_ "

Avery's wand flew out of his hand before he could do anything, sailing through the air and into Professor Vertstone's hand. The Slytherin boys looked shocked, and there was no guilt or shame in their face. Only regret that they'd been caught. Mulciber didn't want to try anything in front of a professor, much less one who demanded as much respect as Professor Vertstone, so he hastily shoved his wand into his robes. Professor Vertstone waved his wand, muttering a spell under his breath, and John felt his legs become free once more. He scrambled back to his feet.

"Fifty points from Slytherin." The professor stated, Avery's wand still in his hand. "For harassing another student."

"But professor-" Mulciber started, his and Avery's mouths having dropped open with disbelief.

"Return to your dormitories. I'll be having a word with Professor Slughorn about your behavior." Professor Vertstone said sharply.

"What about my wand?" Avery asked, and the professor held it out to him.

"If I catch you again, you won't get it back so easily." He warned.

With that, the Slytherin boys scrambled off to their common room. Professor Vertstone said nothing to John, only fixing him with a look that told him he was meant to follow. John should have guessed they were going to the Potions classroom, but he hadn't been fully paying attention to the conversation as his skin was covered in itchy, painful boils. The Defence teacher spoke with the Potions Master. It was a short conversation, and John was handed a potion to drink. He felt his skin cool, and when he touched his face it was soft. Softer than it had been before the boils, if he was being honest with himself. It was sort of satisfying.

Professor Slughorn sighed as Professor Vertstone led John out of the Potions classroom. The Defence professor was taking him to the Gryffindor common room, that much was easy to guess. He wondered why Professor Vertstone would be in the dungeons in the first place, but he supposed it wasn't his place to ask no matter how much he wanted to. His curiosity was itching for the words to tumble from his mouth though, so he let them despite knowing his professor wouldn't be interested in answering it.

"Why were you in the dungeons?"

"I could ask you the same question."

"I wanted to say hello to the house-elves, but I got lost." John answered with honesty. "Then I bumped into those two. And I couldn't even cast the jelly-legs jinx." His cheeks flushed red and he watched his toes as they walked.

"The jelly-legs _curse._ " Professor Vertstone corrected.

"Oh." John hadn't known it was a curse. "So what were you doing in the dungeons?"

"I had been on my way to see Professor Slughorn."

"What for?" John questioned further, and Professor Vertstone exhaled through his nose.

"I have… connections with an apothecary. Professor Slughorn ordered ingredients through me." He answered, words said quickly as if he wished the conversation to be over.

"What kinds of connections?" John asked, not paying any mind to this.

"Mister Smith, if you would refrain from prying into my personal life it would be much appreciated." Professor Vertstone fixed him with a hard stare. John shrunk back.

"Sorry." He mumbled. "When do we learn that spell you did? The one that yoinks the wand out of someone's hand?" If Professor Vertstone found the use of the word 'yoink' to be odd, he said nothing of it.

"Later this year."

"Thank you for stepping in, by the way." John said after nodding.

"It _is_ my job." Professor Vertstone pointed out, very much wishing this twelve year-old would shut his mouth.

"Still! I don't know what would've happened if you didn't show up."

"You would've found yourself in the hospital wing with tentacles sprouting from your face."

John shut his mouth. The lack of conversation didn't stretch out for too long, however, as they reached the portrait of the Fat Lady. John said the password and turned to thank the professor again, but he was already gone. There was no point in trying to find him, so he entered the common room, breathing a sigh of relief as the warm atmosphere comforted him. It was past curfew, so most students were in their dorm rooms save for one of the prefects. John quickly explained Professor Vertstone had walked him back after he'd gotten lost, and succeeded in preventing a loss of house points.

He went up to his bed and curled up under the duvets, easily falling asleep. The next morning, he was vaguely aware of James waking up early as he usually did, but he only pulled the blankets over his head. He didn't properly wake up for another few hours and when he did, nobody was left in the dorm room. John went down to the common room after changing from yesterday's clothes into pajamas, and he found his dorm-mates lounging about. Peter and Remus were playing wizard chess as Sirius and James joked around. He sat in a nearby armchair and watched, enjoying the slow, pleasant day and telling none of his friends what had happened last night with Mulciber and Avery. He didn't want to dampen the mood after all. It was a shameful encounter anyways.

Remembering last year's Christmas morning, John went to bed exceptionally early. This choice granted him a decent eight hours of sleep before James woke everyone up at four in the morning. John was woken by Sirius's shrieks more than anything else. James had covered him in glitter and poured cold water all over him. Somehow, Remus managed to sleep through this. John would've been jealous if he hadn't chosen to go to sleep early.

After Sirius realized it was Christmas morning, he jumped out of bed, glitter be damned. He dove for his presents, and John laughed at him. He went to go wake Remus up in the meantime. Remus looked at him blearily and John hated it because he was cute. They formed a circle on the floor and took turns opening presents. John wound up with several Beatles bobbleheads (courtesy of Allie- he wondered why she thought he liked them so much?), a sack of candy, some books, and a broom care kit amongst other things. James had so many gifts it was hard to count. Sirius's pile was small, but he treasured each gift (aside from the one from his parents) and laughed at the multitude of tennis balls he'd received. Remus's gifts were exclusively made up of books and chocolate; he was easy to shop for. Peter had a varied assortment of things, from joke gifts to a used muggle book on conspiracy theories. That last one was from Remus.

"Oh!" John smiled as Fopsy popped into the room.

"What's an elf doing here?" James asked.

"She helped me with your presents." John answered before Fopsy could worry she wasn't welcome.

"Fopsy is hoping the Young Misters James, Sirius, Peter, and Remus enjoy their gifts!" Fopsy piped up, floating various desserts over to everyone.

"What's this?" Sirius asked.

"Figgy pudding. There's this muggle Christmas carol with it." John said, amused by his friend poking it.

Sirius's face lit up upon learning it was a muggle thing. He was an easy person to please. Peter's dessert was a cheesecake, which would have been more amusing a few years from then. Remus had a chocolate sculpture of a lion (John wasn't sure if he would have appreciated a wolf so he decided to play it safe). He'd given James a treacle tart on a whim, and his guess had turned out well. John smiled. There was also a Yule log cake to share between the five of them.

So, Christmas was fun. John almost forgot about Avery and Mulciber. He distracted himself with the hijinks his friends got up to, indulging in the Christmas Feast when it was time for that. The day after, he scribbled out a drawing of a smiling Fopsy with the words 'best elf' above her head. He convinced Remus to come with him to the kitchens to deliver it to her. It wasn't that he was afraid of Fopsy's reaction, it was more the fear of Avery and Mulciber catching him alone again, but he didn't say anything of that. His friends didn't know about that incident, and John wanted to keep it that way. Remus, being the best at Defence of the group (as well as being wonderful company and exceptionally cute), was the first person he thought to ask to accompany him.

Fopsy cried huge, wet tears at the sight of the drawing, messy as it was, crinkling the parchment in her little hands. It was impressive none of the tears touched the paper, and John patted her on the head. He was rather fond of Fopsy. Remus, feeling somewhat awkward, wondered why he was there. Fopsy carefully tucked the drawing into the tea towel she wore and wiped her face, beaming at John and practically singing her praise. She seemed to have changed his title to 'Kind Master' instead of 'Young Mister' but it was still just as long as it had been before. It took a while to leave, but by the end of it John was glad she enjoyed the present.

The holidays were nice. A pleasant interlude between terms. When the other students returned home for the holidays, the good mood was unfortunately dampened by Professor Dumbledore's speech. One of the muggleborn student's family was nearly caught by Death Eaters. Dumbledore refrained from naming the student, but John suspected the looks sent toward the Ravenclaw table must have meant something. He put emphasis on the solidarity they needed to have, and John feared that his parents were in danger, but he didn't borrow a school owl to write them for fear that their return letter would out him to his friends.

John took his wand out of his pocket, bending the wood, albeit not by much as it wasn't extremely malleable. If he couldn't defend himself against Avery and Mulciber, how would he be able to protect his parents? They wouldn't be able to do anything against Death Eaters. John looked up to the High Table at Professor Vertstone. He needed extra lessons.

* * *

 ** _Word Count: 3,000_**

 **(that's such a clean word count like? holy damn)**

 **Anyways, I hope I wrote Professor Vertstone correctly. And I hope the bullying seems realistic; I've literally never experienced any bullying in my life so it's difficult for me to write. The bit about tentacles is actually because according to the HP Wiki, that's the result of furnunculus and locomotor wibbly being combined lol**

 **I don't have much else to write here, I would love it if you could leave a review! I love all you guys and hope you enjoyed the chapter. See you next time!**


	15. Chapter 15

The first day back to classes, John couldn't take his usual nap during History of Magic because he was hyper-aware of the Slytherins in the classroom. He was glad it was the only class with Slytherin that day, but Wednesday they had double Potions with them after lunch. John was glad it was safe in class with teachers watching. His eyes kept trailing up from his defence text to Professor Vertstone in their last class on Wednesday. As the bell rang, John told his friends not to wait up for him. He walked up to the front desk.

"Professor?"

"The homework is a twelve inch essay on vampires." Professor Vertstone stated without looking up from a paper he was grading.

"Er, yes, I know." John blinked, fiddling with the end of his jumper. "I-I was wondering if you could give me extra defence lessons." The professor's quill stilled.

"No." He answered, dipping it in the inkwell.

"B-but Professor!" John squawked, not having been prepared for such an immediate rejection.

"I cannot give any of my students special treatment." He said as he corrected a spelling error. There were a lot of purple marks on the page. John felt sorry for whoever wrote it. Wilkes?

"Please, Professor, I don't want to be useless against Mulciber and Avery again." John begged. Professor Vertstone looked up from the parchment.

"If I agree to give you extra lessons, I will be expected to give everyone else extra lessons as well. I understand your wish to gain a better grasp on your magic, but you would be better served asking a sixth year."

"Why not a seventh year?"

"They should be busy studying for their N.E.W.T.s." He answered simply. John sighed.

"Is there really nothing I can do to get you to teach me?" John pressed. Professor Verstone put his quill down and sighed.

"Are you ready for the extra workload?" He asked, and John nodded without thinking about it. "The extra hours on weekends? Extra homework?" John nodded again, albeit more hesitantly.

"I really want to get stronger." Less useless, at least. There was a long moment of quiet that hung between them.

"If you can write me two feet on why you are so desperate to have extra lessons, I will consider it." Professor Vertstone said, after much deliberation.

"Oh, thank you so much Professor!" John cheered, then dashed out of the classroom.

Instead of joining his friends for leisure time, he went down to the kitchens with his school bag. Fopsy was immediately at his side, asking him what she could do for him. John vaguely asked for something to eat before getting a parchment and quill out and trying to think of why he wanted extra defence lessons. The first thing that came to mind was how much of a coward he felt like for running away and having to be rescued, and he hated that. He didn't want to have to depend on others to protect him. He didn't want to be so horrible at magic. He hated that James and Sirius were so effortlessly better than him.

But above those urges, he realized it was down to his parents. He struggled with them, unsure whether it would be safe to tell them he was a boy, but he still cared for them. He knew everything they did and all their misconceptions came from a place of love. He knew he would be devastated if anything happened to them, and he knew they wouldn't be able to defend themselves if the Death Eaters decided to target them. John wanted to keep them safe.

Fopsy brought him his meal as John decided what he would be writing about. He stayed in the kitchens for around two hours before deciding to head back to the Gryffindor common room. He succeeded in finding his way up out of the dungeons this time, and avoided running into any unsavory Slytherins. Lily spotted him as he entered the common room and insisted he sit by her. She was working on a Potions essay. They chatted and he shared with her his mission to get more Defence lessons from Professor Vertstone. She offered to look over his essay when he was finished.

It took a moment to think over what he had written in his rough draft, and he hesitated, not sure if she would want to stay friends with him after reading. He hadn't been the most subtle about the state of his gender, as he was writing it under the impression that nobody would read it aside from Professor Vertstone. It wasn't the main point of the essay, but he hadn't avoided talking about it in any sense. Lily's eyes were kind and her smile seemed to say she wouldn't care about anything she learned from it. John bit his lip and Lily didn't pressure him. Neither of them spoke for the rest of the night. John didn't give her an answer.

The next day, he focused more than usual in Defence, wanting to show Professor Vertstone that he was serious about the extra lessons. After reviewing vampires, they went over the knockback jinx they learned last year with the intent of learning its more powerful form next class. John's spellwork was no better than usual and he was understandably frustrated by the end of it all. In Charms, they worked on cushioning charms, and John's frustration continued to mount when he left class with more bruises than anyone else. Lily hadn't a blemish on her fair skin. He spent all of lunch rewriting his essay for Professor Vertstone, and nearly collapsed with relief when it was time for Herbology. That was his only pleasant class, as double Transfiguration with Ravenclaw gave him such a bad headache he almost cried. James's gloating when he got the spell right on the first try certainly hadn't helped things. Professor McGonagall stopped him after class and John groaned audibly. His friends sent him pitying looks and left him behind.

"Step into my office." Professor McGonagall said, leading him to her office. It was simple, with hardly any personal touches. A paperweight shaped like a cat sat on the desk, along with a framed photograph John couldn't see as it was facing away from him.

"Am I in trouble?" John asked, wondering if somehow his incident with Avery and Mulciber had been twisted to blame him instead of them.

"I am merely concerned with your academics." She folded her hands on her desk. "You continue to excel with Herbology and Potions, but your grades in the practical magic classes have been abysmal." John winced at her blunt honesty. "Now, there was a marked improvement following my last talk with you, but you have slipped once more. I hope for your sake this isn't going to become a pattern."

"It's not my fault everyone is better than me." He grumbled, crossing his arms and sinking lower in the seat he'd taken in front of her desk.

"Mister Smith, you are in no way incapable." Professor McGonagall said, her voice firm but not harsh. "Magic is very much tied to one's emotional control, and it is possible stress could be affecting your spellcasting abilities."

"But I've _never_ been good at magic!" John insisted. "It doesn't matter how hard I practice, I'm never anywhere close to what everyone else can do. I _wanted_ to be good at transfiguration, but James is loads better than me when he isn't even trying- but he _does_ try so I don't have _any_ hope of catching up!" He exclaimed, his voice rising. "Lily is a _genius_ at charms, Remus is _miles_ ahead of me in defence, Snape is the best at potions, and the only thing _I'm_ good at is herbology but everyone knows that's the easiest class so it doesn't even _matter!_ " He stopped to catch his breath, wiping his eyes and feeling like he was burning. It hadn't been his intention to shout, but it had been the first time he'd properly voiced these insecurities.

"It does no good to compare yourself to others, Mister Smith." McGonagall said after a pause, her voice calm. "And you are certainly not the first student I've had who struggles with magic when they first start out. We need to determine the precise root of the problem, and I can tell you right now that being angry is doing nothing to help." She paused, and John sniffled. "What were you doing differently that brought your grades up last time?"

"M-my friends were tutoring me…" He mumbled, avoiding eye contact.

"There's no shame in that." She told him, but suspected the words didn't get through to him. "Why did you stop asking for their help?" McGonagall flicked her wand at a tea set and it began preparing itself.

"It's embarrassing…" John fiddled with his robes. Professor McGonagall detected a stubborn individual and tried a different route.

"What part of magic is difficult for you?"

"All of it?" He shrugged, but thought harder when she fixed him with an unimpressed stare. "I just don't understand it."

"The theory?" She pressed, and he nodded. It would explain why he struggled with charms, defence, and transfiguration but not herbology and potions. "Have you considered asking your professors for help?" She asked, thinking she knew the answer before he even shook his head.

"Well… I-I asked Professor Vertstone for extra lessons." He admitted after a moment. "He said I have to write a two-foot long essay about _why_ I want them though." There was a pause.

"And are you doing so?" She asked, and John nodded. "I believe Professor Vertstone will be able to assist you with theory. From what I've been told, he is an effective teacher."

"But what about charms and transfiguration?" John asked, frowning.

"When you understand the theory behind one type of spell, the others will be easier to understand as well. I would offer to give you extra lessons myself, but my duties as Head of House and Deputy Headmistress keep me busier than most other professors." She smiled at him, looking truly sincere in her regret. "I do wish to see all my students succeed however, so my offer still stands if you ever need to talk. I hope you will do so of your own volition sometime. Tea?"

John blinked as she poured herself a cup, and he accepted. It was surprisingly flowery, and she told him it had been imported from overseas. Professor McGonagall said nothing when he wiped his face with his sleeve, instead offering him a biscuit. They discussed his schooling for only a brief moment longer before she asked him how he was doing outside of classes. John wondered if she had these sorts of conversations with all of her students, or just those who were in danger of failing their classes. It was pleasant regardless of this, and when he left he felt more relaxed than he had in quite some time.

He hadn't mentioned Avery and Mulciber to Professor McGonagall, and he wondered if she knew about that incident. She hadn't asked him about it, though that might have been to avoid unpleasant conversation matters after they'd gotten past the talk of his grades. John stood at the stairs he knew would lead him to the kitchens and glanced from the stairs to the doors of the Great Hall. He wasn't entirely sure of the time, but he was positive he hadn't been kept past dinner, so he decided to go to the Great Hall.

Not in the mood to be around the high-energy shenanigans of his dorm-mates, James sat beside Lily. Her usual gaggle of girl friends was nowhere to be seen, but she smiled at him when she noticed him. Perhaps the girls weren't around because she was reading. He helped himself to dinner and they chatted. It was a pleasant conversation. They finished eating, and as they were standing to go to the Gryffindor common room, John made a decision.

"You can read my essay."

"Are you sure? I don't want to make you uncomfortable."

"Yeah, I'm sure."

John waved at his friends as him and Lily left the Great Hall. Neither of them spoke, and the Gryffindor common room was decently empty with how many students were at dinner. Him and Lily sat on one of the couches and he pulled the most recent draft of his essay out, shoving it in her general direction without looking at her. The minutes he waited for her to finish seemed endless and his nerves almost made him sick. When Lily finally finished, she handed it back to him and smiled.

"I can't think of anything to change, John." She said his name firmly. "You're not a daft sort of bloke when you know what you're talking about."

John hugged her tightly, burying his nose into her hair so she couldn't see the emotion on his face. The lack of immediate questions and the deliberate emphasis of his name and status as a 'bloke' was enough for him to know she didn't care that he was trans. Lily returned the hug, patting his back. It was through sheer force of will that he didn't cry. She was the first person he'd told after Allie, and he'd known Allie his entire life. He mumbled his thanks into her ear before pulling away.

"So you're like, Michael Dillon?" Lily asked, and John looked at her cluelessly.

"Michael Dillon?"

"Yeah, Laurence Michael Dillon." Lily responded, very unhelpfully. "He died in '62, when he was in India." She added.

"I don't see how that makes me anything like him, as I am currently still alive and not in India." John raised his eyebrow.

"He got a bunch of surgeries and took pills and stuff for the thing." Lily said, finally giving him some useful information.

"Oh. I guess so. I dunno about getting a bunch of surgeries though." He said, then fixed her with a confused look. "How do you even know about him? _I_ don't even know about him."

"I wanted to be in the navy when I was a little girl." Lily giggled, as if she were no longer a little girl. "There were some stories about him so I read them even though it all went over my head at the time."

"You? In the navy?" John laughed. "You wouldn't do well in the navy."

"Oi, shove off!" Lily laughed, shoving his arm without much force. She clearly didn't mean it though as her eyes were full of mirth.

The two of them continued to joke around, not getting a single lick of work done. John rolled up his essay and put it into his bag, planning on handing it to Professor Vertstone the next time he saw him. It was nice, telling someone about himself and being accepted. He wondered if Remus felt the same way about them telling him they didn't care about him being a werewolf.

James and the other boys entered the common room with loud laughter. The bespectacled boy's grin dropped slightly when he saw John and Lily together on the couch, sitting perhaps the smallest bit too close. John noticed and felt a dirty sort of pleasure from the way his face screwed up in poorly concealed jealousy and his dorm-mates all went up to the room. Lily nudged him as he'd gone quiet and John returned the nudge, mentally berating himself.

It wasn't as if he fancied Lily, and it wasn't right to be happy with his friend's jealousy. While he was pleased there was actually _something_ James wasn't better at than him, that didn't mean he had to be nasty about it. It wasn't as if getting along with Lily was a particular skill anyways. He would have to make sure to remind James he didn't like Lily that way before things got out of hand. He didn't want pointless romantic drama to get in the way of his friendships.

James looked embarrassed when John brought it up later that night, and scratched his hand through his hair. He didn't admit it, but John got the feeling he was reassured. The five Gryffindor boys went to sleep soon after, and the next morning John woke up nearly as early as James to rush off to Defence Against the Dark Arts after an early breakfast. Professor Vertstone looked over from the chalkboard as he entered the room and arched a thin brow. John pulled his essay out and held it out to Professor Vertstone.

The professor took the essay and walked to his office, silver cane tapping on the ground. John decided to sit at his usual desk and wait for class to start. He was woken by Lily sitting beside him and class seemed to fly by despite John's lack of understanding of what they were doing. It was a practical lesson on the knockback jinx and John certainly found himself knocked back several times by Lily's wand. After class, he approached the Defence professor, who told him he would read his paper before dinner. John sighed and nodded but went to Transfiguration without further complaint.

Defence may have passed quickly, but the rest of his classes certainly didn't. He practically ran from the dungeons when Potions was over at the end of the day. Avery and Mulciber couldn't have bullied him if they tried. His friends watched him go with confusion, but he didn't notice. John was out of breath by the time he reached the Defence classroom, and Professor Vertstone raised his eyebrows at the second year wheezing in his doorway.

"Your first lesson is on Sunday at 2 o'clock." He stated, walking over to John and handing his essay back. At the top was a single word in purple ink. 'Good.'

"Th-thank you professor!" John gasped out. He received a rare smile from the typically stoic Defence professor.

"Don't be late." He said, and that was all.

John nearly collapsed. His legs felt like jelly from running and he was ecstatic. The walk from the Defence classroom to search for his friends was slow as he let himself catch his breath. He'd done it! Now all he had to do was hope the lessons actually paid off. He was feeling optimistic.

* * *

 ** _Word Count: 3,057_**

 **So, math places Hogwarts' student population at around ~280 students yeah? (there are the boys and girls dorms which have 5 students each, so 10 new students per house, meaning 40 new students per year, and multiply that number by 7 gives us 280)** **And I know Rowling doesn't think about Hogwarts as being that small of a school (she thinks of it as 1,000...), but the wizarding population is supposed to be TINY compared to muggles (only around 3,000! Which makes NO SENSE if there are generally supposed to be 1,000 students at Hogwarts?), and I personally think it's KIND OF CRAZY to only have 1 teacher for each core subject if the school is _really_ bigger than ~280. Now, there are different ways to interpret the wizarding population, but I like to just base it on the size of Hogwarts as of Harry's year, so that puts us at ~280 students at Hogwarts at a time and the total population being reasonable at 3,000.**

 **With that number I thought, "wouldn't it be nice if the teachers/heads of house were a little more involved with their students' wellbeing? If you, as a house head, have around 70 students you're primarily in charge of every year, wouldn't it be easier to make more personal bonds with them than if you had, say, 250?" So because I adore Minerva McGonagall and John is too stubborn to talk to his friends about his problems, I had her reach out to him.**

 **Aside from that, John finally came out to someone! It was Lily, obviously, and yeah Michael Dillon is actually a real person. I've read a lot of different fics where someone comes out as trans to someone and they all kinda go like "I'm- I'm transgender." very bluntly and the thought of saying that is so weird (and that's even ignoring the fact that I never fully say transgender I just say trans)? And like, they're only 12, I doubt they really care to get into the specifics y'know? So with Lily having some background knowledge (that was kind of just me wanting to make it convenient but hey, kids know things that relate to their interests sometimes) and John's essay explaining it a little I decided I didn't need them to talk about it much. Don't worry, he's still got at least 6 other people to come out to :p None of that is really going to happen until next year tho but whatever**

 **Anyways, I love you all *insert the heart emoticon that fanfiction won't let me keep* it would be wonderful if you could maybe leave a review, it really keeps me going :') Regardless, I hope you enjoyed, and I'll see you next time!**


	16. Chapter 16

John wasn't sure why he thought extra lessons with Professor Vertstone would be fun right off the bat. His poor teacher spent two hours trying to explain theory to him and he still hadn't gotten a good grasp on it by the end of the lesson. He was tasked with reading _The Beginner's Guide to Magical Theory_ before his lesson next weekend. While it was true the book _Magical Theory_ by Adalbert Waffling was one of the books first years were required to purchase, John hadn't made much sense of it at the time and Professor Vertstone determined the beginner's book was more suited to his skill level.

It was horribly embarrassing, of course. The book was thin, with large letters. Its vocabulary also suggested it was for children, and John hated that he still struggled to understand it. He refused to read it in front of any of his friends, save for Allie. John was starting to wonder how on earth he'd managed to pass his first year. He recalled his friends tutoring him more. That was probably it. And all the information left his head during the summer. John huffed, nearly tearing a page as he turned it.

Allie suggested he take notes and John grumbled to himself, pulling parchment out of his bag. He wondered if it would be wrong to bring a notebook and pencil from home. He was fine writing his essays on parchment, but the quill and ink combination was cumbersome when trying to take notes. The two of them were tucked away in the corner of a library, Allie doodling on her parchment instead of doing any actual schoolwork. It was nice.

John made a point not to be in the halls by himself. He hadn't told any of his friends of what was happening with Avery and Mulciber, though he suspected Herbie had an inkling. Professor Vertsone knew of the single incident he prevented of course, and he'd told Professor Slughorn, but John doubted he knew it was a regular thing. He'd stopped by McGonagall's office a few times since their last talk, and determined she didn't know about the incident either. She would have brought it up if she did. They primarily spoke about classes, as John was uncomfortable sharing the details of his personal life. He didn't want to talk about the bullying. He didn't want to talk about his parents. He didn't want to talk about his gender.

After every full moon, the second year Gryffindor boys would go down to the kitchens and get as much chocolate as they could from the house elves before sneaking into the hospital wing while Madam Pomfrey was out. Sometimes John would visit Remus without the others. He suspected Sirius did the same, and it put a nasty feeling in his gut. John was unfortunately very good at getting caught, and he was chased from the wing several times.

Two moons had passed since he started his extra defence lessons, and Professor Vertstone had assigned him a new essay to write or book to read every week. He often found himself falling asleep on one of the armchairs in the common room and waking up the next morning in his bed, not entirely sure who had taken him there. John liked to think it was Remus who carried him up the stairs in his arms and imagining it made his heart flutter, though he knew it was much more likely that one of the boys had used a levitation charm on him.

It was after those two months of extra lessons with him that John realized McGonagall was right; his other classes _were_ easier now. He was still somewhat rubbish at transfiguration, but there was a marked improvement and his work in charms was solidly adequate. His defence lessons were certainly paying off, and John was elated by his progress. The theory actually made sense to him!

They'd even moved on to more practical teachings in his defence lessons. John would never forget the way Professor Vertstone's usual aloof behavior broke when he successfully cast the full body-bind curse on his first try. After dispelling the curse, John feared some form of anger from his teacher, only to be surprised by the large grin on his face. Professor Vertstone gripped him by the shoulders and and shouted 'You _did_ it!' emphatically, a spark in his eyes. His sudden enthusiasm was contagious and both of them couldn't help but laugh. John had only seen such energy from the teacher the times Remus had managed to cast a new spell quickly. It made him ruffle with pride, and somehow the lessons from then on were just a bit more casual.

Unfortunately, his spell-casting was still a bit slow, but at least he could reliably cast most spells. He even managed pull off the full body-bind curse on Avery once, causing him to tumble down the stairs. His reward for that particular bit of magic was a trip to the hospital wing with leeks sprouting from his ears and pus running from his nose, courtesy of Mulciber. Madam Pomfrey tended not to ask questions, and for that he was grateful. He glanced toward the bed Remus always slept in after the full moon. The mediwitch shot him a warning look.

"You'd better not be thinking of bothering him the next time he comes here." She warned, having caught onto his habits and knowing there was no point in pretending Remus didn't have lycanthropy.

"I just want to help him…" John mumbled, rubbing his nose. She'd stopped the spell easily, but he still felt sort of gross. His ears itched. "It's not fair that he has to deal with it every month." Madam Pomfrey sent him a sympathetic look.

"I know it's hard dear, but there's nothing you can really do."

"But I _want_ to help!" John frowned. "Bringing him chocolate and talking to him isn't enough when he's in that much pain."

"I am trying my best, Mister Smith." Madam Pomfrey said. John crossed his arms, frowning.

"You can't heal his cuts and scratches?" He asked, and she shook her head.

"Unfortunately, it's not so simple as that. His wounds are curse wounds. All I can do is clean them and apply the dittany as soon as possible in hopes of leaving as few scars as I can." Madam Pomfrey told him. John sighed.

"What's the point in being a healer if I can't even help my friends?" He asked.

"You can help by being there for them." Madam Pomfrey sighed. "I don't like having people bother my patients, but I can admit it does him some good."

"So you'll let me visit?" John asked, full of hope.

"Yes. But not those other boys. They're rowdy when they're together, and that's the _last_ thing he needs."

Madam Pomfrey patted his shoulder, telling him he was free to go. John scampered off, wondering if that meant Sirius wasn't technically allowed to visit the werewolf in the infirmary. The thought made him feel smug, in a sort of twisted way. He was begrudgingly accepting that he definitely fancied the other boy, but he sort of hated himself for it and he wasn't about to admit it to anybody else. Well, maybe he would tell Allie. He shared everything with her. He'd even told her Remus was a werewolf, which was perhaps something he shouldn't have done, but he hadn't thought about that at the time and she wasn't going around telling anyone anyways. She was surprisingly good at keeping secrets, after all. Six years of them knowing each other had gone by, and she still hadn't let it slip that he was trans.

Time seemed to fly by with everything that was going on. He was kept busy between classes, extra lessons, and friends. Him and McGonagall would share smiles after each Transfiguration class (unless he needed somebody to talk to, in which case he would fail to smile and she would ask after his wellbeing). On Wednesdays, he continued his study sessions with Lily and Remus. After every full moon, Madam Pomfrey would let him in to see Remus without issue. He'd even started asking more questions of magical healing during these visits when Remus was unconscious, and she suggested an easy book on healing spells and potions.

With exams approaching, the various pranks and other such shenanigans died down as everyone focused more on studying. One of the only people not studying was Sirius, but he seemed pretty confident that he didn't need it. John wasn't sure what he spent all his time on, and he could only be glad the other boy didn't disrupt anybody's studying as he himself was busy trying to work through the material the professors said would be on their exams. It was exhausting, but John was satisfied by his understanding.

It was a gruelling week, and John was one of the last ones testing in every subject other than Potions and Herbology. He took the afternoon following his last exam to enjoy the sun, his school robes discarded as he sprawled out on the grass. James was lamenting the lack of quidditch that would be taking place over the summer break. Sirius eagerly spoke of his plans to try out for beater again next year. John kept quiet, wondering if he would be able to make it onto the team. One of the chasers would be graduating… Perhaps he had a chance…? He would try out again. And this time he'd try harder. He wouldn't give up halfway through. He was still ashamed of himself for that. If he could go back in time to slap his past self, he would.

Opening one of his eyes, John observed Remus. There was a soft smile on his scarred face as he listened in on James and Sirius's conversation. For once, he didn't have a book in his hands, and his shabby robes were loose because of the heat. John sighed, and Remus glanced at him. He commended himself for his ability to keep his cool as he smiled and acted as if he hadn't been watching him- of course his eyes had simply been wandering and he happened to zone out while looking at him! Remus smiled back; either John's acting was good or Remus was an oblivious fool. John suspected the latter. He was sure his cheeks were red and he looked away from his friend after a moment.

Peter was giving his input wherever he could in the conversation. He wasn't a remarkable player, but his beady little eyes were trained in watching the players fly about the pitch. It was a nice day; perfect for flying, really. John sat up, nearly asking the others if they wanted to join him in flying, but he decided against it. James would show him up. Sirius would ensure they play a match. He didn't want that at all. On the pitch, he flew in large circles on his Swiftstick, closing his eyes and enjoying the breeze. Not sure where the quaffles were, he just threw pebbles through the hoops. He wished Allie were there. She would've been fun to fly with.

With exams over, everyone chose their electives for the next year and began packing for the summer. John was reluctant in his packing, but got it done on James's insistence. Not that James knew how to pack. The two purebloods were used to a house elf doing everything for them. One may have expected Remus to be helpful in that regard, but Remus was a horrendously messy person and he barely folded his clothes before shoving them in his trunk and hoping it would close. In the end, it was Peter who had to help everyone pack.

They had the day to waste until the end of year feast and boarding the train. John bid them farewell as he put his wand in the chest pocket of his dungaree shorts. In the common room, he bumped into Lily, who asked if he wanted to go say goodbye to the teachers with her. He agreed, not having had a particular plan in place when he said goodbye to his other friends. The two of them chatted as they went to find their Head of House.

Minerva McGonagall was in her office, reclining in her chair and reading a book. There was a pot of tea and a tin of biscuits on the desk in front of her, and John helped himself. She looked up at them and smiled. Lily's farewell was polite and very familiar. John wondered if she'd gone to speak with the professor when she was feeling down. Lily glanced at John, who flushed slightly and looked down at his feet. He fiddled with his fingers.

"I-I just wanted to say thank you." John said, looking at the older woman. "I'm glad you made me talk to you." He smiled, and she smiled back.

"Anytime, Mister Smith. Happy summer."

John swayed on his feet somewhat before darting around her desk to hug her and return her wishes of a happy summer. His cheeks burned and he ran off, barely even giving her enough time to return the embrace. Lily followed him and the two went off to say goodbye to Professor Flitwick. John didn't have much to say to the small man, but Lily was gifted in charms so the two of them had a good relationship. Lily brought up Professor Slughorn, though John didn't care much for the man. They were closer to the Defence classroom than the dungeons, and Lily didn't particularly care for Professor Vertstone beyond believing he was a good teacher, so they parted ways.

The Defence classroom was pristine. Every desk was clean and aligned in perfect rows and columns. None of Professor Vertstone's materials were around the room. It looked as if nobody had ever taught anything there. It was a strange sight. John went to the office, but found that it too was in the same eerily untouched condition. Sounds came from the open door off to the side of the room, and John called out, not wanting to intrude on his professor's sleeping chambers.

"Professor Vertstone?" He waited in front of the desk, hearing the movements still. The tall man stepped out of his room, adjusting his cravat.

"Yes, what is it?" Professor Vertstone asked, looking less put together than was usual for him.

"Er, I was just wishing all my professors a happy summer." He told him. Professor Vertstone stilled, looking at him as if in a different light.

"That's very kind of you." He said. "I'm afraid I will no longer be your professor, however." John blinked.

"Wh- but why?" He asked, eyebrows raising and knitting together. A frown marred his face.

"Well, some say there is a curse on the position." Professor Vertstone said, distant. Then he sighed, looking at John. He thought for a moment. "Besides, it wouldn't be right to expect my fiancé to run his apothecary without any help while I'm off teaching you all." It was true he liked to keep himself at arms distance from his students, as he was their professor and not their friend, but he could admit he was closer to John that most of his other students. Besides, he wasn't his professor any longer, and he deserved to know why he was leaving.

"Fiancé?" John blinked, his mind going blank. Fiancé? His?

"Yes, my fiancé." Professor- no, just Vertstone, leaned on his desk. "He is the apothecary I mentioned back when I first rescued you from those two boys."

"Oh. Right." John stared up at Vertstone. He'd always thought of him as being very old, but he seemed young and full of life now. Perhaps it was a teaching thing. "Er, well I hope the two of you are happy."

"We are, thank you. I'm considering starting a duelling class when I get settled into my new home. If you are interested and willing to travel to Wales, feel free to owl me."

"Thank you, Professor Vertstone." John said, not feeling comfortable with leaving the 'professor' bit off.

"Have a good summer, John."

"You too."

John nodded at him and left. Originally, he had considered visiting Professor Sprout, but the greenhouses were far and while he did excel in Herbology, he didn't have a particularly personal relationship with her. As he wasn't going to speak with Professor Slughorn and he had no reason to seek out any other teachers, he let his feet carry him as his mind was both racing and blank at the same time. It didn't take long to reach Gryffindor tower.

He sat in the common room with some confusion. A lot was on his mind then. He knew he couldn't attend Vertstone's duelling class; he didn't live near Wales. And Vertstone's fiancé was a man? He'd said it so casually, as if it weren't a big deal. John sat on that couch with his mind spinning until it was time to go to the feast. He was quiet during dinner, barely remembering to clap when Ravenclaw won the house cup. His friends shot him worrying glances, but didn't say anything until they were on the train, the soon to be third year Gryffindor boys piled into one compartment.

"Alright mate, what's going on?" James asked, fixing John with a concerned stare.

"Professor Vertstone is getting married to a man." John blurted, then covered his mouth as if he'd said something dirty and wrong.

"So?" Sirius asked, leaning against the window. The train had barely started moving and he watched as they pulled further and further away from Hogwarts. He was gloomy. John would have compared him to a dark cloud that refused to rain.

"That's not- you don't…?" John wasn't sure how to articulate his thoughts.

"We don't what?" James asked, tilting his head. Peter looked at him oddly. Remus sighed and took it upon himself to explain.

"A lot of muggles don't like it when relationships are anything but a man and a woman." He explained. James scrunched up his nose and Peter looked taken aback. "Peter, I thought you were a halfblood?"

"W-well I am, but I'm _almost_ a pureblood." He mumbled.

"Almost a pureblood?" John questioned.

"New Purebloods, or newbloods as some like to call them." Sirius elaborated. "Magic-folk who haven't had muggle blood in their family for four generations. Blood purists like my mum barely treat them better than halfbloods though. It's stupid. Blood is stupid." He spat.

"Oh." John wasn't sure what to do with that information. It wasn't very important to him, and he regretted asking.

"Wait, hold on, are you saying muggles wouldn't like it if a bloke wanted to be with his best mate?" James asked, incredulous as he redirected the conversation to its original subject. "Merlin's beard, why would they care about something as stupid as that?" John started.

"Wizards don't care about that sort of thing?" His eyes were wide. "Really?"

"If they did, I can assure you Professor Dumbledore wouldn't be so influential as he is." Remus chuckled.

John's head was back to spinning. Wizards… didn't care about that sort of thing? _Dumbledore_ was bent? He was starting to wish he'd been born knowing he was a wizard! He let his eyes trail over Remus's face as he laughed even more at James's disbelief, feeling less turmoil inside than he had before. There was nothing wrong with him. Clearly none of his friends would judge him for that sort of thing. The train ride continued and John relaxed. The only unfortunate thing about the ride was Sirius's dread that was about one step away from becoming a physical entity.

"You know what we should do?" James asked.

"What?" Peter responded eagerly.

"Everyone should come over to my place for the summer!" He exclaimed. "My mum and dad let me do whatever- we could play quidditch and stay up all night!"

"What about the moon?" Remus asked, his voice hard to hear over the train engine.

"Er…" James clearly hadn't thought it through completely. "Well, you could go home for that bit maybe?" He suggested. "Or… I don't know. Maybe not the _whole_ summer."

"It might be better for my mum. She's dealing with divorce papers and my dad's already moved out." Peter said.

"I doubt my dear old mother would let me stay." Sirius huffed. "She's an evil bitch." There were scandalized gasps all around the train. "Oh come off it, we're all teenagers."

"I'm actually still twelve." John said. His birthday was in mid-July.

"Well you're just a baby." Sirius retorted. John made an offended noise.

"I bet my parents could get your parents to let you come stay over for the whole summer." James said with confidence. "A lifetime supply of Sleekeazy and the promise to get you out of their hair."

"Wait, your mum and dad made Sleekeazy?" Sirius sounded shocked.

"Of course!" James squawked. "How else would I get my hair to look so nice?"

James ran his fingers through his messy hair and John suspected he'd never used this 'Sleekeazy' in his life. They began joking about how Snivellus should use Sleekeazy. It was a pleasant train ride, and the mood lightened considerably with Sirius's hope to go to the Potter's for the summer. John told James he would ask his parents himself. He didn't want any owls. He didn't want any questions. He may in Gryffindor but he was still terrified of their reaction. Sure, wizards didn't care about gay people, but his parents weren't wizards and he had no idea how they would react if he told them he was trans.

That was why he automatically rushed to say goodbye to his friends on the train and find his parents before they could meet. He needn't have worried. Gerard was there with Victoria and they told him his parents were waiting for him at home. London was a long ways away from their little hometown after all. It was much easier to get there with magic than without, and his parents weren't big fans of the floo from the one time they'd used it to buy his school supplies first year. Allie joined them after a few minutes, and soon they were on their way home for the summer.

* * *

 ** _Word Count: 3,734_**

 **Sorry if you think the rest of year 2 was rushed. I'm aiming for around a 30-chapter length for this fic, so this is supposed to be around the halfway point anyways**

 **My depression is kinda taking over even though I'm up to date with my testosterone shot. I feel like shit honestly and I don't know why and I hate it and my Writing & Rhetoric class is kicking my ass and making me feel worthless**

 **Sorry for the venting, I usually try not to do that too much on here. I love all of you guys and you don't have to review, but that's oftentimes what kicks me back into writing more. I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and I'll see you next time**


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